


Don't Let Me Go

by imawarlock



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Anal Sex, Bottom Erwin Smith, Drinking, Fluff, M/M, Massage, Recreational Drug Use, Summer Romance, only a bit of angst later
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-21
Updated: 2019-02-05
Packaged: 2019-06-14 02:42:24
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 21
Words: 82,468
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15378942
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/imawarlock/pseuds/imawarlock
Summary: Two weeks into his summer vacation, Levi is regretting that he agreed to spend it in a tropical paradise. A city boy at heart, he despises the beach and finds himself quickly becoming overcome with boredom — at least until he meets Erwin, a blonde hunk whose presence seems promising, even if he does happen to live on a fucking houseboat.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> i hope you guys enjoy this eruri summer romance fic as much as i've been enjoying writing it! all comments and kudos appreciated, thanks for reading <3

When Erwin first saw him, he was wandering around on the crowded docks, a small man carrying a large fishing pole in cargo shorts and a loose tank top. He had dark hair and pouty lips and a disgruntled look on his face that grew worse each time he passed, and because he was cute, because Erwin could not help but notice him from where he was sipping his morning coffee on the ‘porch’ of his houseboat, he stood up and walked over to the railing to call out to him. 

“Are you lost?” He asked, shouting over the noise of all the other people passing by.

Immediately, the man stiffened. Turning to fix Erwin with a wary expression a second later, he took a moment to very obviously look him up and down, his eyes lingering on Erwin’s bare chest as he leaned forward to rest an arm against the awning. Because he wasn’t stupid, Erwin offered him a friendly smile at that and then observed how flushed the man’s round cheeks were, red and ruddy from the tropical heat, perhaps, _or_ from something other than that entirely. 

“What?” He muttered in response to Erwin’s question, though, frowning and squinting at him through the sunlight. 

“You seem lost.” Erwin repeated, trying to sound as unthreatening as he could in the face of the man’s cautiousness. It was understandable, he thought, that he might be a little put off by some random guy dressed only in jeans who had shouted at him from an old houseboat. “I was just wondering if I could help you.”

At that, the man bit his lip. He looked Erwin over once more and then — much to Erwin’s delight — apparently decided to trust him, stepping closer across the dock so that they would no longer have to shout to hear each other above the crowd. 

“I dunno.” He still said though, cocking his head while Erwin noticed deep blue eyes and gorgeous collarbones. “That depends. Can you sell me a fuckton of worms so I can get the hell out of here? This place smells like dead fish and shit.”

Although Erwin had certainly not been expecting to hear anything like  _ that _ , he could not help but laugh at the crass, but honest, language. 

“No. I can’t sell you anything, but I  _ can  _ tell you that you probably won’t catch anything out there with worms.” He replied, under the assumption that the man was going fishing — both because of the tall pole he was still carrying and his apparent search for bait. 

“What? What the fuck do you mean? Isn’t that what people use to catch fish?” He asked, speaking as if he had never actually done a day of it in his entire life. 

He probably hadn’t, Erwin thought. He wasn’t a local, clearly, because of the lack of a summer tan on his skin and the fact that he didn’t know his way around the marina, and he wasn’t even carrying anything other than a pole with one single, tiny hook — something that would not do if he wanted to catch anything out there that was even  _ remotely  _ worth keeping.

“Sometimes.” Erwin replied, fighting back any amusement he might have had in favor of simple kindness, as he got the sense that anything other than that would not exactly be appreciated by such a prickly seeming individual, not right then. “But around here, you’re better off using minnows. There’s a guy that sells them just over there, around the corner.”

Pointing, Erwin watched as his directions were followed by his new ‘friend’s’ gaze, the tight frown on his face becoming less so after a few seconds passed before he glanced back and nodded in understanding. “Okay.”

“You might want to get some bigger hooks, too. And a bobber, at least. The guy at the shop can help you. Just tell him that I told you to come by.” Erwin continued, smiling again while the man shifted on his feet before him and cocked his head in confusion.

“Huh? Why the fuck would I do that? Will he give me a discount, or something?”

“Ah...no.” Erwin replied, likely looking a bit sheepish now. “We’re just friends. For every customer I send him, he buys me a beer.”

For a moment, Erwin thought the man was going to roll his eyes at that, as he was aware that he might have just made it sound like he’d only started this conversation because he wanted free beer. Thankfully, though — because that was not the case at all — his words were only met with an amused snort, one that was followed by a quick shrug before Erwin heard him speak again. 

“Okay.” The man said quietly. “I will. Thanks, uh…?”

With the way that he trailed off — raising his eyebrows questioningly, too — Erwin got the sense that he was being asked for his name, that the potential fisherman in front of him wanted to know who he was talking to either so he could tell Mike at the shop, he thought, or perhaps just better thank him. 

“Erwin. My name is Erwin.” He told him in hopes that it was the latter, purposefully fixing a wider smile than he’d exhibited before on his face that nearly faltered when the man abruptly turned on his heel and began to walk off. 

“Okay. Thanks, Erwin.” He called back, just as Erwin opened his mouth to stop him, knowing what he wanted and what he had been about to ask anyway without even having to pause to think about it.

“Wait!” He shouted, leaning over the railing of his boat so that he could watch the man turn back around. “What’s your name?”

Pausing, Erwin’s new acquaintance eyed him up and down again — his gaze very pointed and coy, he noticed — before he glanced back up to meet Erwin’s hopeful gaze. 

“I’m Levi.” He said, leaving no time for Erwin to say anything else before he had continued his quick dash away, adjusting his fishing pole over one shoulder and soon disappearing into the crowd almost as suddenly as he had come. 

_ Levi.  _ Erwin repeated to himself then, keeping his eye on him until he was gone and then returning to the seat he’d been occupying before on his houseboat. 

Smiling to himself, he took his coffee in one hand and marveled at the way his pulse was now pounding. Where had Levi come from, he wondered? What was he doing on the island? Erwin didn’t know, but even so, even though their conversation had been short and sweet, he knew he was intrigued, and he could not help but hope that he would end up seeing Levi again another time, and soon.


	2. Chapter 2

Grumbling under his breath, Levi made his way down from the end of the long pier. It was about noon and it was fucking sweltering, and he’d been up there since 7:30 A.M. without even experiencing so much as a single bite on his stupid fishing pole. So much for that shit, he thought. So much for catching dinner. So much for relieving his boredom on this dull, shitty,  _ sweaty _ island, the place that he’d foolishly agreed to spend his entire summer at after he and his mother had been invited to come stay at his Uncle Uri’s beach house with him and Kenny.

Beach mansion was really more like it, Levi knew, but whatever. The fact that it was luxurious, the fact that it had been a generous offer and his mother had wanted him to accompany her very much did not mean that Levi was automatically going to have a good time, because he wasn’t. Sure, he’d rather spend his summer on vacation than working some shitty part-time job in the city while waiting for college to start again, but...well, the problem was, he just hadn’t really ever been a big fan of the fucking beach. No, he disliked it immensely, actually, because the water made him nervous — who knew what the fuck was in there — and his skin was prone to burning, something that was not conducive to an atmosphere where the damned sun was always out and shining brightly, beating down on him and making everything so hot and humid at all hours of the day that it honestly sometimes felt like torture. 

He despised being that sweaty all the time and did not enjoy having to constantly reapply sunscreen either, and as if all of that wasn’t enough, there was, of course, the sand, which somehow ended up in the most uncomfortable of places no matter how careful Levi tended to be whenever he was around it. For obvious reasons, he hated feeling or finding grains of that shit in his asscrack or under his armpits, and so when he had initially agreed to go, he’d just planned on staying mostly indoors or lounging around beside Uri’s big pool. His mother had given him the guest house and taken a room on the main property so that he would have as much privacy as he could get, but even so, even with all of that, barely two weeks had passed before he had started to get  _ bored _ . 

He missed his friends, he thought, and the Wi-Fi on the island was shitty. There was no cable at the house and he didn’t have much to read, and although the pool was nice, he could only spend so many days floating around with a beer before he began to get antsy to do something else. Being idle for that long didn’t suit him in truth, but what were his other options? The island, he knew, had surfing, snorkeling, diving, and all kinds of things like that for the many summer tourists that flocked there, but those were out of the question for him. What else could he do? Eat? Drink? Fish? That was an idea, but he’d never done that before and hadn’t had the slightest idea how. 

How hard could it really be, though? Didn’t you just need a fishing pole and some bait? That’s what he thought, but he couldn’t get fucking Google to load when he’d decided that he wanted to find out. Still, he figured it wouldn’t hurt to give it a try. It wasn’t like he had somewhere to be, he thought, or was short on time to waste, and so with that in mind, he woke up bright and early one morning and went to root around in Uri’s huge garage for some fishing gear. There was all kinds of shit in there — jet skis, a boat, his many cars, and shelves and shelves of beach equipment — and as he suspected he would, he easily found a pole and a hook shoved somewhere in one of the back corners.

Taking that, he secured his only mode of transportation — a fucking pink bicycle with a glittery seat that belonged to one of Uri’s nieces — and strapped the thing to his back, figuring that he’d be able to find some bait at the marina that was a few miles away from Uri’s house. After that, he planned on going to the pier because he’d seen people fishing from there before, but first, he had to make his way down from the veritable mountain ridge that Uri’s vacation home was built on. It overlooked the coast and meant that Levi had a long ride down a bunch of hills, hills that he was absolutely  _ dreading _ making his way back up again later once the temperature had peaked in the afternoon. 

For that reason, he almost turned around and gave up his plan right then and fucking there, wishing, too, that he had a license so he could just drive instead of having to use a bike. Still, it was probably good that he get some exercise after sitting on his ass for the better part of two weeks, and so he tried to ignore how fucking hot it was already and hoped that he could catch some fish to make it all worth it. He rather liked the idea of having something fresh like that for dinner, he mused, but unfortunately, after acquiring the bait and making his way to the pier, he had come up frustrated, empty handed and pissed off from the wasted hours and the shitty, unrelenting heat. 

_ Jesus fucking Christ, _ he thought. It wasn’t even afternoon yet and he already felt like he was fucking  _ melting _ . Could he even make it back up the goddamn hills without passing out, without his balls becoming glued to his fucking leg because he was so sweaty that he was leaking like a stuck pig? 

He didn’t know, but still, although he  _ was  _ irritable and disappointed that he had not caught anything, he could not stop himself from wondering if he had found something else — or some _ one _ — that would turn out to be far more interesting to him than any potential fish could actually be.

Erwin was the guy’s name, he remembered; the man he’d met at the docks before he failed miserably to catch any dinner. At first, Levi had assumed he’d been some kind of creep yelling at him like that, but after taking one look in his direction Levi had sincerely hoped not. He’d been all long legs, golden hair, and sun-kissed skin, he thought, made up of thick muscle that he’d gotten a free eyeful of because for some reason he hadn’t been wearing a shirt. No, he’d been barefoot and only dressed in a pair of jeans — and Levi meant  _ only _ , because he was pretty sure that the outline of Erwin’s junk he’d glimpsed meant that he hadn’t been wearing any underwear — and had looked to be in his early 20’s like Levi, but even so, he was pretty sure he had been talking to him from the front porch of a houseboat.

Did that mean he... _ lived _ on the fucking boat? He wasn’t sure, but Erwin had asked him his name like he was interested and had a smile that was almost as bright as the sun itself, and because of that, Levi could not help but be intrigued by him and wonder if Erwin felt the same — at least just a little. 

He’d seemed to understand some things about fishing for sure though, Levi thought. Was there a chance that he happened to know anything more than what he’d already told him?

“Hey.” Levi called out to him the next morning, deciding to find out and arriving around the same time in flip flops while carrying his fishing pole. 

“Hello, Levi.” Erwin said right away, all but grinning again and adopting the cutest, most eager puppy-like expression when he saw him that stupidly made Levi’s heart skip a beat. “Did you catch any fish?”

Biting his lip, Levi did not answer right away, instead taking a moment to glance over at Erwin just as he had done before. Again, he immediately noticed, he was without a shirt and shoes and this time wearing some kind of loose swim trunks, his messy hair — clearly, he had not brushed it after waking up — making him look boyish even as at the same time he appeared manly and handsome enough to catch  _ anyone’s  _ gaze, much less Levi’s own wandering one. That being said, his hands were dirty because he seemed to be cleaning some kind of boating equipment, but still, his eyes were a clear blue, as blue as the ocean behind him and the sky above that, and although Levi knew he probably shouldn’t, he immediately stepped closer again to stand at the edge of the dock. 

“No.” He said, shaking his head. “I didn’t even get one fucking bite.”

“That’s a shame. Where were you fishing at?” Erwin replied, moving from the sitting position he’d been in and wiping his hands, too, before he walked over to stand about two or three feet away from Levi at the railing along his boat. 

Watching him, Levi noted how the rolling waves beneath it seemed to make Erwin bob up and down — something that made it extremely difficult for him to not stare straight ahead at his stupidly perfect looking bare chest as it moved.

“The pier.” He murmured instead, keeping his eyes locked with Erwin’s while he again asked him another question.

“And you bought the minnows, I presume?”

“Yeah. I didn’t use them all, so I just let the rest go.”

“What about the other equipment?”

“Yeah. See.” 

Assuming Erwin was talking about the bobbers and the bigger hooks, Levi pulled out a package of each from his pocket, both of which he had purchased from Erwin’s apparent friend Mike at the bait shop around the corner. He’d been tall and blonde too, Levi remembered, but he hadn’t said much, and there was something about Erwin and his striking features that had caused him to want to come back almost as soon as he had left the day before. 

“Those do look good.” Erwin remarked, placing his hands on the boat railing so that he could lean over and inspect what Levi held out in his palm. “But maybe your bait is too close to the surface. The water at the end of the pier actually goes pretty deep. I would try getting some weights; you can attach them to your line and let it sink.”

“Does your friend have those?” Levi asked,  _ kind of  _ wondering why Erwin had not told him that before even as he nodded. 

“He should.”

“Does he have to get you another beer if I buy something else from him?”

“Technically, yes.” Erwin responded, another smile appearing on his face at Levi’s question. “He hasn’t even bought me the one from yesterday yet, though.”

Raising his eyebrows at that, Levi had half a mind to ask Erwin out right then so that he could buy him the stupid beer himself. He had to admit that the idea didn’t sound bad at all, he thought, but he was cautious, unsure about this still, and so he just snorted in mock derision instead, pausing a moment to look around the boat — and away from Erwin’s glistening, prominent biceps — before he continued. 

“Do you live here? On this boat?” He asked, changing the subject because he  _ was  _ curious, too. 

“Yes.” Erwin answered right away, clearly having no qualms about Levi delving into his personal business — something that caused his eyebrow to quirk just before he stiffened when Erwin immediately wanted to know why. “Why do you ask?”

“No reason. I’m just wondering.” Levi replied defensively, crossing his arms and scuffing his foot on the dock, not about to admit anything to Erwin just yet even if he  _ was _ the most gorgeous thing that he’d seen on this vacation so far. 

“Oh, alright.”

“Don’t assume I’m interested or something, shit.”

“I wouldn’t dare.”

“...are you from the island?”

“Yes. I am. I was born here.”

“And you fish a lot, I guess?”

“Sometimes. I did more when I was younger. My father taught me, and we would go together.”

“How much do you usually catch?”

“A good bit; usually enough to feed myself with some leftover to sell.”

Humming thoughtfully to himself, Levi eyed Erwin again and let all of that digest for a moment, deciding that although they  _ were  _ basic questions, he liked what he’d heard, and he’d liked the way that Erwin had answered him. That being said, though, he still wasn’t entirely prepared when Erwin seemed to  _ flirt  _ with him next, finding himself caught off guard enough to fucking blush when he leaned forward again and gave Levi his most charming, lopsided, and  _ adorable _ smile yet. 

“That was a lot of questions, for someone who isn’t interested.” He murmured, a playful tone to his voice that caused Levi to feel quite warm — this time, he thought, because of something  _ other _ than the goddamn heat. 

“Yeah, well.” He replied, chewing on his lip and averting his eyes again and barely resisting the urge to flirt back. He wanted to, he thought, he really did, but he was determined to be careful and needed to think about this guy more, and instead just found himself playing coy, swallowing before he continued while Erwin loomed large and close right in front of him. “I guess I just ask a lot of questions.”

“I guess you do. Feel free to ask more, if you want.” Erwin said, clearly undeterred in the face of Levi’s guardedness. 

Because of that, because even  _ if _ Levi refused to give in completely just yet, he still decided that he wanted to know for sure what Erwin was thinking, if he truly was flirting with him like Levi suspected, and ended up snorting, eyeing him carefully before he asked one more thing just to see what Erwin would actually say. “About you, or about fishing?”

“Either.” Erwin replied immediately, a pleased expression on his face that made Levi feel excited, and that caused him to have to look away again so that he wouldn’t give in and smile back at Erwin like he wanted to.

The corners of his lips were twitching, in fact, but he ignored it in favor of just nodding, shifting from one foot to the other on the dock again and listening to the sound of the water lapping up against the side of Erwin’s boat. It was quieter then, he thought, than it had been the day before, but still, he wondered how Erwin could stand it, how he could live right there with the dead fish smell and all of the people wandering around just a few yards away from his sleeping space. 

“Okay.” He said after a moment, aware of Erwin’s gaze still on him and feeling like he should probably beat it before he got in over his head. “I’m going to buy the weights now. Thanks for the advice, Erwin.”

“Will I see you around again?” Erwin asked before he could, though, speaking in an eager tone of voice that nearly had Levi blurting out ‘yes’ before he could even help it. 

“Maybe.” He said instead, remaining vague in the face of his uncertainty. “I’ll be here all fucking summer, so we’ll see.” 

“Alright.” Erwin responded with sparkling eyes and a big smile — one that let Levi know his non-committal comments had not affected  _ his  _ apparent interest in the least. 

That’s what it was, Levi now knew for sure: interest. He’d suspected it yesterday, of course, and had probably actually come back that morning because he wanted to confirm  _ that _ more than he’d needed fishing tips, but now that he knew, he had to decide whether he wanted to fucking do anything about or not. For obvious reasons, the thought of doing so, of throwing all caution to the wind and himself at Erwin, was incredibly tempting, as it would be an understatement to say the guy was hot and he was built like a brick shithouse. 

What did it matter if he hadn’t come there with the idea of having any sort of....summer fling, or whatever? Sure, he’d never even actually done anything like that before in his life, but the thought of it wasn’t necessarily unwelcome. No, on the contrary, he could easily see how something like that could be fun, how he might enjoy himself because it would surely be ‘no strings attached’ and he wouldn’t have to worry about all the bullshit that came with relationships normally — a promising notion  _ especially  _ since this seemed like a surefire way to solve the issue of his ever growing, mind-numbingly  _ tedious _ boredom. 

All that being said, though, Levi was cautious at heart about things like this, and had never been one to jump into some kind of romantic entanglement without even thinking about it a bit. That was why he’d left the docks in a hurry both that day and the day before, but still, what did he have to lose? What were the reasons that he  _ shouldn’t  _ go back and openly flirt with Erwin? Because he could still be a weirdo, Levi knew, even if he felt that he was a decent judge of character and he’d only come across as kind and gentle to him so far. Also, he lived on a houseboat, and on an older one that looked like it had come straight out of the fucking 60’s at that. Did he really want to fuck a guy on a houseboat in the middle of a marina that smelled like fish and rotting seaweed? 

He wasn’t sure, but then again, even if he decided he was willing to do that it didn’t mean it was automatically going to happen. Indeed, just because it was clear that Erwin held a mild interest in Levi and vice versa did not mean it wouldn’t go away if they started really talking and decided it had been preemptive and maybe even ended up just friends instead, but would it hurt to give it a try? No, Levi figured, it probably wouldn’t, as he could always get the hell out of high water if things got weird or if Erwin’s houseboat proved to be too much for him to take. It wasn’t like he had anything  _ else  _ to fucking do, he thought, just as he had with the fishing — fishing which he was about to attempt again, in fact, as he’d bought the weights and spent his entire ride over to the pier thinking about all of this while on his bike.

Perhaps, he thought, if he caught anything that day, he would bring Erwin the beers he deserved and they could share them together the next evening. 


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “You’re back.” Erwin said, purposefully tossing Levi a flirty smile over his shoulder. “Again. Need more fishing tips?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you guys for your nice response to this fic!! i'm happy that it seems to be liked so far, and ty for all the comments and kudos as well <3

Because Erwin had been lucky enough to see Levi  _ two  _ days in a row when he hadn’t even expected him to come back at all, he could not help but hope that he would have the pleasure of talking to him again a third time. 

For that reason, he woke up bright and early the next day and sat out on the back of his boat — something that was his habit anyway, but that he now did while peering through the throngs of fishermen and vacationers instead of just watching the water like he normally did while he drank his coffee. Feeling strangely positive about his interactions with Levi so far, Erwin waited and observed and admittedly yearned more than he probably should for someone he’d just met, but unfortunately, it soon became apparent that Levi was not going to make an appearance before he had to go down to the beach to work. 

Still, he did not let it worry him. It had only been one day, after all, and even though Levi had been vague about whether he would actually come back to begin with, Erwin thought it had been rather clear he was just playing hard to get. Because of that, and because Levi had so obviously checked him out openly and without shame more than once — something that had admittedly given him a sharp thrill right below his belt, as he could not deny that he liked the way it had felt to have someone like Levi’s eyes on him — Erwin was pretty sure that he’d been fine with his flirtations and interested despite how he’d flat out tried to deny it.

In fact, Erwin had found that to be charming too, just like he did with every thing he’d learned about Levi so far. True, he thought, that hadn’t been much, but the point was that he wanted to know more, that he wanted to see Levi again because he had just been so appealing and overwhelmingly easy on the eyes. He was beautiful in an untraditional manner but beautiful to him nonetheless, and even his smooth voice had seemed to light some kind of spark in Erwin’s lower belly — one that he realized he hadn’t really felt in a long, long time. University kept him busy, he knew, as did his many jobs, but now it was summer and at least one of those things was out of the picture, and because of that, he could not help but hope that he would have the chance to get to know Levi better, that he’d come back and Erwin could lean over his boat and cause his cheeks to turn that delightfully charming shade of pink again. 

He’d looked so cute when he’d blushed, Erwin thought. It had made his heart flutter, but even so, even though he had  _ appeared  _ momentarily bashful, Erwin knew that he wasn’t, as he had already realized it was that very thing — the hidden, unabashed brazenness there, the strong will that he could sense lurking  _ just below _ Levi’s closely guarded surface — that he liked about Levi the most. Indeed, glimpsing just a small hint of it as soon as they’d met had been all it’d took for Erwin to realize he wanted him, he remembered, to know, immediately upon spotting that one, single spark of something fiery, how much he really, truly wanted to reach out in the hopes that he might end up getting  _ burned _ .   

Despite all that, though, Erwin still felt he had to let Levi come to him. He seemed skittish, he thought, like a small cat, and he kept that in mind while he taught his diving lessons that day whenever his mind began to wander, purposefully spending more time in the water afterward in the hopes that it might cool down some of his admittedly heated thoughts — thoughts that had no real chance of going away, not when Levi actually  _ did  _ come back, anyway, casually strolling up to his boat later that evening after Erwin had gotten back from the beach.  

It was dusk when he returned, dark enough so that the lights strung up around his floating home were on and he’d had to put a match to some candles to drive away the mosquitos. He’d just put his gear away and he’d been washing the sand off his arms and legs after peeling off the uppermost part of his wetsuit, and although his back had been to the dock, he’d somehow known when he’d heard the wood creaking that he was going to find Levi standing there behind him.  

“Hey!” Levi still called out to him, though, shouting as he had the morning before despite the fact that it would have taken a lot less to actually get Erwin’s attention. “Hey, I...uh—

Amusingly, Levi trailed off and then stopped when he presumably realized that Erwin was  _ wet _ , that he was again bare-chested and using a hose to rinse off his body from the neck down. 

“You’re back.” Erwin said then, purposefully tossing Levi a flirty smile over his shoulder. “Again. Need more fishing tips?”

“No. I don’t....I mean, what the hell are you doing?” Levi replied, managing, then, to meet Erwin’s eyes instead of — again, presumably on Erwin’s part — where he’d been staring straight at his ass. 

“I’m washing off.”

“No shit. Are you a diver, or something?”

“Sort of. I teach classes sometimes, on the beach.”

“Oh.” Levi murmured, as Erwin then dropped the hose and leaned over to turn it off. “Well...uh, are you teaching a class right now?”

Suppressing a chuckle, Erwin felt almost bubbly on the inside as he slowly walked his way over to the railing. “No. Why?”

At that point, he realized that Levi was carrying some type of tote bag. He’d already noticed that he didn’t have his fishing pole with him this time, of course, as well as what he was wearing — a t-shirt and shorts, simple, loose clothing that was surely meant to keep him as cool as possible despite the heat — but had somehow missed the bag, a curious accessory that became even more curious when Levi stuck his hand inside as if he was going to pull something out. 

“I caught a fucking fish.” He announced then, glancing up at Erwin with an almost mischievous sort of sparkle behind his eyes — one that could have had Erwin doing laps around the marina in excitement even without knowing what it was for, and that was followed up by Levi lifting his arm and suddenly presenting him with two very  _ large, _ very  _ full  _ looking bottles of beer. “And I thought I’d bring you these, or whatever, just in case your friend still hasn’t bought you the ones he owes you yet.”

“Oh.” It was Erwin’s turn to say then, honestly feeling completely surprised by what he saw as an  _ amazing  _ turn of events.

Even when he’d imagined Levi coming back, he knew, he’d never thought that he might do something like this, that he might bring him a  _ drink _ , and it made him feel good, made him smile warmly as he stared at the beers in his hand and then glanced back up into his face, noticing, though, how Levi now actually started to look concerned by then, his brows drawn down a bit as if he might be worried that Erwin was actually going to refuse his thoughtful gift. 

“Thank you, Levi.” Erwin said right away, because of course he was  _ certainly _ not going to. He wouldn’t dream of it, he thought, and instead just took it as the opportunity that he hoped it was actually meant to be. “But I can’t take both. Do you want to drink one with me?”

“On your boat?” Levi mumbled, averting his eyes so that he could look Erwin’s houseboat up and down a bit suspiciously.

“Ah...yes. Is that alright?” Erwin asked, wondering, for a moment, if he had somehow accidentally said the wrong thing.

“...yeah. Whatever.” Levi said after another second though, shrugging his shoulders and then stepping towards where the railing opened up so that he could climb on faster than Erwin could actually blink. 

He’d moved suddenly, but still, Erwin all but lunged forward and reached out in an effort to help him by holding out his hand — a hand which Levi grabbed onto, and which Erwin used to steady him while he half-leapt across the water so that he could stand on the deck beside him. Because of that, because Levi had jumped over from the dock so fast and was now  _ on Erwin’s boat _ , he could not stop himself from giving into the butterflies filling his stomach, pausing to stare at Levi with wide eyes for a moment despite all of his fairly confident flirting earlier because he almost couldn’t  _ believe  _ this was actually happening. 

Then though,  _ then  _ he basically grinned, allowing himself to savor how warm Levi’s fingers were against his own and how much cuter he looked close up.

“Thanks.” Levi muttered when he saw him, letting go of Erwin’s palm then, crossing his arms, and averting his eyes towards something else pointedly.

“Of course.” Erwin responded, chuckling to himself at Levi’s stubbornness — he’d looked at his chest, Erwin had seen, for  _ at least _ three seconds once he’d landed on the boat — before he gestured to one of his empty seats. “Please, have a seat. I’m going to go change, actually, but I’ll be right back.”

“Okay.” Levi nodded, following Erwin’s direction and gingerly sitting down while he disappeared into the cabin. 

That, of course, was the actual  _ house  _ part of his houseboat, a small, enclosed section with his living quarters and kitchenette in one room and his bathroom and bedroom off in another. Making a beeline for his clothes as soon as he entered it, he stripped out of his wetsuit — he’d been planning to change already anyway, as the thing was not dry or all that comfortable, but suddenly wanted to make sure he looked more normal since Levi was there — and pulled on a pair of regular shorts, passing a hand through his hair to straighten it as he all but raced back outside to get to the deck again.

There, he found Levi sitting where he’d left him, curiously eyeing everything he could see until Erwin reappeared and began to pull up a chair beside him. 

“For fuck’s sake.” Levi muttered when he sat down, when he also dragged a small table over for them to rest their beers on. “Do you even own an actual goddamn shirt?”

“Yes. I own several, in fact. Why do you ask? Would you like me to go put one on?” Erwin replied, raising his eyebrows teasingly when Levi just snorted and apparently decided he didn't want to answer that question. 

Instead, he put the two beers on the table and then watched Erwin reach for a bottle opener, licking his lips — his luscious, red, kissable lips, Erwin thought — as he popped the top off of both their drinks and took the time to inspect one of the labels. 

“These are good beers.” He observed then, a statement that actually meant, of course, that the beers Levi had brought him were known to be rather expensive, so expensive and tasty, in fact, that it did not even matter that they were drinking it all warm.

“Yeah. I got them from my uncle.” Levi replied, shrugging one shoulder as if it was no big deal, as if he had beer like this all the time — something that piqued Erwin’s curiosity and caused him to again raise one of his eyebrows.

“Your uncle?” He asked. “Is that who you came here with?”

“Yeah. Well...I guess. The guy who owns the house I’m staying at...he’s my uncle’s sugar daddy.”

“Your...uncle’s sugar daddy?” Erwin repeated, staring at Levi, feeling almost dumbfounded for a moment at that statement while Levi gazed into the opening of his beer bottle and appeared to be trying not to laugh. 

Was Levi fucking with him? Erwin honestly could not tell because of the comically blank tone he’d uttered that in, but it didn’t matter when whatever dam he’d constructed to do so finally burst anyway, when he suddenly let out the tiniest, most adorable sounding snicker that had Erwin laughing a lot louder than he had intended too. 

“Yeah. I’m fucking serious.” Levi said after, though, taking a swig from the bottle and shaking his head a bit at Erwin’s retained smile. “His name is Uri Reiss. He’s loaded, loaded as fuck, and—

“Uri Reiss? You mean, the Uri Reiss that lives up there?” Erwin interrupted, pointing towards the mountain — at where parts of his house were visible in the far distance — and unable to help it because of the surprise he felt at Levi mentioning that name.

“Uh...yeah. You know him, or something?” Levi asked, raising a thin brow in Erwin’s direction across the table. 

“Yes. Everyone on the island does, probably. He’s been coming here for a long time. He’s very generous with his money.”

“Huh? What do you mean?”

“I mean...well, he does a lot, but he built the community center not too far from here. He helps us recover everytime there’s a big storm, and he financed a new pier — the one you were fishing at. Before, there was a much smaller one that had been nearly falling apart. I remember being afraid to walk out onto it when I was a child.”

“Oh.” Levi replied, snorting at Erwin’s story but otherwise appearing nonplussed.  “Well, he’s also my uncle’s sugar daddy, and he said me and my mom could come stay here with them this summer.”

Nodding, Erwin allowed himself to look Levi up and down then, having felt surprised to hear that he was staying with someone so rich because he did not seem like he’d come from that kind of background at all. He probably hadn’t, he figured, as just because his uncle-in-law was wealthy did not mean that his immediate family was, but still, he felt that he could not resist the urge he suddenly had to tease Levi about it a bit.

“I see...” He murmured in a mock cryptic tone at that thought, hiding his smile behind his beer while he took another sip.

“You see? What does that mean?”

“Nothing. I just didn’t know I was talking to a rich kid.”

“What?! I’m not! I’m—

Interrupting Levi with another bout of low laughter, Erwin reveled in the amusement he felt at watching his face contort into a cute kind of scowl in response. He glared, Erwin saw, and wrinkled his nose, but the expression melted away almost as quickly as it had come once he took one look at Erwin’s playful smile. 

“Asshole.” He replied, taking another large swig from his beer bottle — perhaps to cover up the fact that there was no venom whatsoever behind his words. 

I’m sorry.” Erwin still said though, leaning forward over the table so that he could see Levi more clearly through the darkness. “I shouldn’t have said that. I didn’t think you were a rich kid.”

Obviously, Erwin meant before then, and at that, Levi paused. He bit his lip — a nervous tic, perhaps, that Erwin noticed every time it was repeated because it happened to make his blood go hot — and eyed him carefully, and then glanced away for a moment while the boat gently rocked in the water beneath them. The wind was blowing, Erwin thought, enough so that the salty smell of the ocean was strong and strands of Levi’s hair had drifted in front of his eyes, tangling over them in such a way that Erwin suddenly longed to reach out and carefully brush it all aside with his fingers. 

What would he have to do to gain that privilege, he wondered? More than whatever was happening now, probably, but amazingly enough, Levi’s next words made Erwin wonder if  _ he  _ was thinking along the same lines too.

“What  _ did  _ you think, then, huh?” He asked, his eyes bright and playful as he stared at Erwin over the table. 

“What did I think? When I met you?” Erwin responded, only wanting to clarify because his heart was now pounding in his chest and he needed to be sure that it was warranted. 

“Yeah. I mean, since you’re such a smart guy and didn’t know I was a rich kid and all, you should have fucking thought some other shit about me then, right?”

“Well…” Erwin started, smiling softly before he, too, took a turn to purposefully avert his eyes as Levi had done before. Glancing down toward the deck for a moment, he returned his gaze much quicker than him, though, and watched as Levi studied him with a seemingly neutral expression before he continued. “Yes. I thought you were lost, like I said, and…”

“And?”

“And...well, let’s just say that I was more than happy to give you fishing tips.”

At that, Levi snorted, and shook his head in an incredulous way before he drank more of his beer. “Is that why you forgot to tell me about the weights until later?”

“No, I didn’t forget. I just wasn’t stupid enough to tell you everything I know the first time.” Erwin murmured, while Levi cocked his head at him from across the table. “How else would I be sure that you’d come back to see me again if I didn’t?”

“Hm…” Levi hummed at that, staring at him for a moment while Erwin raised a questioning eyebrow.

“Does that make me a ‘smart guy’ too, like you said?” He could not help but ask, thoroughly enjoying the continuous thrill he was getting from their mutual flirting — flirting, he thought, that was more obvious and open on Levi’s part than it had actually been so far. 

Why had he truly come down with the beers that night, Erwin wondered? Was it because Levi wanted this? He hoped that was the case, obviously, and felt confident that he was right, but still, as he had already begun to realize, Levi was not going to be as easy to unravel as someone else might have been. Thankfully, though, Erwin had never been one to deny himself a challenge. 

“I dunno. You tell me.” Levi replied in the face of that thought, causing Erwin to perhaps smirk more than he had intended. 

_ Alright, _ he told himself. If Levi really  _ did  _ want to know — which he did, he knew, he’d been pressing him for it the past few minutes — then what was the point in continuing to play coy? 

“Okay, then yes.” Erwin responded then, holding Levi’s stare while his stomach flip-flopped in his belly. “I think it does. I think I’d like to get to know you better, Levi, but what about you? You brought me beer all the way down from your house up on the hill; that’s odd for someone who said he wasn’t interested.”

Of course, Erwin was just teasing him with that last bit. He didn’t expect Levi to answer and to deny it like he had before, but surprisingly, this time he did, after shrugging, leaning back in his chair, and gazing out into the ocean for a moment as nonchalantly as he could manage at Erwin’s confession — despite the fact that his cheeks had also turned a very obvious, very  _ lovely _ shade of dark pink.

“Maybe I changed my mind.” He said quietly too, so quietly, in fact, that Erwin had to strain and lean in closer to hear it, immediately realizing when he did so that Levi was wearing the tiniest, most adorable sort of pleased smile, one that Erwin would have been crazy to not want to see a hundred times again.

“Maybe?” He repeated with that in mind, honestly having to suppress the urge to jump for joy at how this all seemed to be unfolding.

“Yeah, maybe. I’m not sure yet, though. Keep talking, and I might figure it out.”

Needless to say, Erwin was all too happy to comply with Levi’s request. 


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “You know, Levi.” Erwin murmured, appearing a bit mischievous. “If you really want to catch something to eat, I know a spot not too far from here where we could probably get some good fish.”
> 
> “Really? You’re not shitting me, are you?” Levi asked, raising an eyebrow and wondering if Erwin was proposing that he take Levi fishing himself. 
> 
> Surely, Levi thought, if he did, he meant somewhere close by that they could walk to or whatever, right?

Two and a half days later, Levi found himself sitting on the pier with his legs dangling off the edge, staring down at his phone in his lap as he waited on a text from Erwin. 

Erwin, who Levi had left with his number after they’d drank beer on his boat, who he’d been talking with ever since, and who was charming, sincere, and everything that Levi now wanted to throw his focus into while he was on the island. 

Well,  _ almost  _ everything, he thought. He was still trying to fish for his dinner, still trying to catch something big enough to eat, as the one he’d told Erwin about had barely been larger than his left palm. He’d thrown it the fuck back and given up on anything else that day since it had taken him several hours to even get that, and...well, unfortunately, frustratingly enough, he had continued to be completely unsuccessful ever since. 

Whatever, though. He’d been too distracted for the most part to get  _ too  _ fucking annoyed by it, having mainly just been using fishing as something to fill up his time while he exchanged texts with Erwin and made plans to see him again. He hadn’t since that night, he knew, because of Erwin’s ‘classes’ — not only did he teach diving, Levi learned, but snorkeling, surfing, and paddleboarding as well, in between the occasional request he got to use his boat as some kind of charter — and the fact that his mother had decided to make him his favorite meal the last evening for dinner.

_ “What have you been up to, Levi?” _ He remembered Kuchel asking, peering at him with a small smile and speaking in a familiar motherly tone that he knew all too fucking well.  _ “I haven’t seen you around the house much lately.” _

Managing to blow  _ that  _ question off because he wasn’t about to tell his mother that he’d been flirting with some blonde hunk down at the marina, Levi ignored the vibrations coming from his phone in his pocket as well, waiting until he’d safely locked himself in the guest house so that he could read Erwin’s messages alone. 

_ Are you free tomorrow after lunch? _ Erwin had asked him, while Levi honestly had to fight the urge to not roll around in bed because of how much he already liked him so far.

_ Damn _ , he also thought, though. Was there still a chance he was making a mistake? He only wondered, perhaps, because he wasn’t used to doing things like this, but did it matter? Did he  _ really  _ care? No, he knew, he didn’t, because he was on vacation and he was having fun, because Erwin was cute and funny and kind, 24 and in college like him, and the way he flirted with Levi through their texts — like there was no tomorrow, and more than anyone else ever had with him before — gave him a thrill that he would be some sort of fool to just openly ignore. 

_ I’m taking a group to a private beach in the morning.  _ Erwin continued, while Levi remembered his smile and blushed like an idiot middle schooler against his pillow.  _ But I should be back by then. Can I see you after? I’d really like to. I promise I have more fishing tips for you, and beer. _

Scoffing out loud at that — by then, even  _ he  _ knew they were well past the point where he could try and pretend that ‘fishing tips’ was the reason he was still talking to Erwin — Levi moved his fingers, only needing one single second to think about and type up an affirmative reply. 

_ Great.  _ Erwin answered right away.  _ Now I have something to look forward to. _

_ Me too. _ Levi thought, although he did not express it out loud. Instead, he kept his excitement inside like a secret and decided to go fishing the next morning while he waited on Erwin to let him know he was back, ending up sitting like he was now in his sunglasses and hair clips — he’d tired of his bangs getting stuck to his forehead, he thought, and had pulled them back — staring at his phone and listening to the surf while his pole leaned up against the pier railing beside him. In truth, he wasn’t paying much attention to it because it was now nearing 11:15 and he was expecting Erwin to message him any minute — something that still caused his heart to jump into his throat as soon as it finally happened.

_ I’ll be back at the dock soon. _ Erwin texted suddenly, prompting Levi to hold his phone up to his face so he could read it.  _ Why don’t you meet me there in thirty minutes?  _

_ okay.  _ Levi replied, hitting send and then leaning forward to rest his head against the railing, unable to stop a small, private smile from growing on his face  _ just  _ as the reel on his fishing pole began to start rapidly unwinding in a rush beside him. 

“Shit!” He shouted when he heard it, jumping up so quickly that his phone clattered loudly on the dock behind him. 

Feeling an excited sort of panic — he had a fish, he realized right away, a big,  _ big  _ fish if the way that his rod bent double when he grabbed it said anything — go through him that was made even worse when he thought of Erwin, when he imagined himself walking up to his boat with an impressive catch in hand for their lunch. What would he say? Levi could imagine his smile, could hear his laugh when he joked that Erwin’s ‘tips’ had actually been worth something, and grabbed onto the reel, feeling his eyes go wide at how much tension there was and how hard it was to wind it when—

_ Snap. _

“What the…” Levi muttered to himself, squinting in confusion as everything seemed to go slack. His pole went straight again and the reel wound with ease, and that was when he realized his line had broken, that the damned fish had been so strong that it had snapped it right in half and was now swimming off somewhere with a free lunch.  _ “Fuck!” _

Well, that was fucking shitty, he thought. After all this time, after all of his trying, he’d finally seemed to have hooked a big one only for it to get away. How the hell did people actually do this for sport? He honestly didn’t get it, but whatever. He had somewhere  _ else  _ he’d rather be anyway. 

“Hey, Levi.” Erwin said once he left the pier and made his way to the marina, giving him a wide, beautiful smile that made his prior frustrations with the ocean all worth it — at least just a little. “What is it?”

“There was a fish.” Levi mumbled, assuming that Erwin had noticed the way he was frowning when he’d walked up. 

Meeting him on the dock where he was winding a rope this time, Levi, in turn, noticed that Erwin was wearing swim shorts again and some kind of light, sleeveless, unzipped jacket — one that he hoped Erwin didn’t think counted as a shirt, because it  _ didn’t _ . 

“A fish?” Erwin repeated, taking the time to eye Levi and his rod up and down in  _ that  _ order. 

“Yeah, a bigass fish. It was on my line and started pulling it away and it felt huge, but then the little fucker escaped before I could make him for dinner.” Levi explained, complaining because he’d been so close, so  _ close  _ to finally being able to eat fresh fish that he’d actually almost been able to taste it. 

Oh well, though. The longer he was in Erwin’s presence, the less annoyed he felt about  _ everything  _ in general.

“Oh. I’m sorry.” Erwin replied though, reaching out to take Levi’s broken fishing line in hand while gazing thoughtfully at it in the process. 

As he did so, Levi watched him and then bit his lip, suddenly feeling the urge to get closer even though he was only standing about a foot and a half away from Erwin already. Perhaps because he wanted Erwin to pay attention to  _ him  _ instead of his fishing line, he stepped forward, gazing up at him out from underneath purposefully lidded eyes until he was nearly pressed right at his side and he could smell the saltwater and suntan lotion coming from Erwin’s warm skin. 

Swallowing, he thought about reaching out, but remained still instead when Erwin’s eyes suddenly focused and he turned his gaze back on Levi with a small smile. 

“You know, Levi.” He murmured, appearing a bit mischievous. “If you really want to catch something to eat, I know a spot not too far from here where we could probably get some good fish.”

“Really? You’re not shitting me, are you?” Levi asked, raising an eyebrow and wondering if Erwin was proposing that  _ he  _ take Levi fishing himself. 

Surely, Levi thought, if he did, he meant somewhere close by that they could walk to or whatever, right?

“No. I’d be happy to take you there, if you want. It’s only a quick boat ride, and—

_ “Wait.”  _ Levi interrupted, feeling his eyes go wide and a sudden bout of apprehension sweep through him at the mention of  _ that. _ “A fucking boat ride? On your...on  _ that? _ ”

Pointing at Erwin’s houseboat, he worried for a moment that he’d come across as rude. If so, he hadn’t meant to, as it wasn’t that he still thought of Erwin as some kind of strange vagabond for living on one, because he didn’t. No, now he knew that Erwin stayed there because it was cheap and because he was in school, and because his father had given the boat to him when he’d moved away from the island and had lived on it when he had been Erwin’s age too — something that explained the hippie era look of it, and why he’d learned over the past few days that Erwin was as fond of it as he seemed. 

He liked his houseboat, Levi had discovered, and was proud of it. It showed, he thought, in how he took care of it, in the fresh coat of blue paint on the house part and the way the hull gleamed under the sunlight, and all in all, he thought that Erwin’s satisfaction over his tiny home was actually cute. However, it was just...the shitty water made him nervous, and—

“I mean...what if it sinks? Or, uh—

“It won’t sink.” Erwin interrupted, eyeing Levi closely in confusion, but thankfully not seeming to be offended at his remarks.

Because of that, Levi chewed on his lip while he stared at the boat and made sure to choose his next words carefully — or at least, as carefully as someone like him could. “Can it even float, though?”

“It’s floating right now, Levi.”

“I know. I mean, out there. On the real ocean.”

“Well, I just had it ‘out there,’ and it was fine. What’s wrong?”

“Nothing.” Levi grumbled, feeling his face turn red as Erwin scrutinized him. 

“Are you afraid of the water?”

“No.” Levi blurted, while Erwin all but beamed — clearly thinking, Levi suspected, that he’d hit the nail right on the head. “I just don’t fucking like it. There’s sharks and eels and jellyfish in there and shit, isn’t there?”

“Yes, but they aren’t usually around, and they won’t bother us on the boat.”

“Well, what if the boat sinks, like I said?”

“It won’t sink, but we’ll have life vests on just in case. Can you swim?”

“Yeah...kind of.” Levi said, because he wouldn’t say he couldn’t  _ not  _ swim. 

He could if he had to, at least in a pool, but he’d never gone out very far in the open ocean, and he had no idea how he would fare with the waves and the current and the potential man eating fish lurking below where he couldn’t see them.

“If it sinks, I’ll save you.” Erwin replied then, his tone turning flirty as he gave Levi a teasing look. “I’ll hold you and swim you to shore, Levi. How about that?” 

_ Dammit,  _ Levi thought, barely able to resist blurting out the word ‘yes’ because of Erwin’s stupid charm — especially when he liked the idea of being enveloped in his arms whether they were in the water or not. They looked so big and strong, he knew, that he couldn’t help but shift his gaze to stare at one while he pondered all of this, while he thought about how much he did actually want to agree to go because...well, because it sounded fun. He wanted to fish with Erwin, he knew. He wanted to spend the afternoon with him, and it wasn’t that he was  _ truly  _ scared, he was just wary.

“We’ll only be on the open water for about 15 minutes, I promise.” Erwin continued while Levi frowned, shifting, suddenly, to brush his fingers very lightly right up against Levi’s. 

It was a gentle touch, he thought, a warm one that was so hesitant while remaining lingering too that it was almost as if Erwin was asking for permission — permission that Levi was all too happy to give, for he moved his hand to grab onto Erwin’s without even giving it another thought. 

“Okay.” He said then too, turning away to hide his smile as his heart skipped a beat, as every other feeling was instantly eclipsed by how excited it made him to hold Erwin’s hand.

“Okay?” Erwin repeated, though, a pleased sounding note in his own voice as he spoke. “So, it’s alright if I hold you, then, if I have to save you?”

Snorting at that, Levi shook his head and glanced back at Erwin then, rolling his eyes even while his ears burned at Erwin’s words. “Fuck, what are you trying to be? A hero, or something?”

“Just for you, maybe.”

“You’re such a dork.”

“Is that a ‘yes?’

“Yeah, fine. You can drag me to shore if you have to, but don’t think that’ll get you any special favors. My mom will fucking kill you if I die out there.”

“Oh no.” Erwin laughed, moving to tug Levi along then. “Not your mother. I’ll make sure to be extra careful while I’m driving then, alright?”

“Whatever.” Levi mumbled, feeling lighthearted as he watched how happy Erwin seemed now that he’d agreed to go out on his boat. 

He probably wanted to show it off, he thought, and to impress him with a good time, but even so, he appreciated it when Erwin took care to ensure he was alright once they got going, too. He gave him his life vest and told him he wouldn’t go fast and let him sit inside his living space — it was very small and very cluttered, he noticed — where he laid on a couch and stared at the ceiling, because as much as he  _ did  _ want to stay close to Erwin, he was not sure he could watch them speed along over the waves even if they never actually lost sight of land. 

Thankfully, the ride was short as Erwin had said, though, and by the time they’d slowed down Levi was able to wander outside to watch as they pulled up closer to their destination.

_ Shit. _ He thought when he saw it, when he realized that they were headed towards an isolated looking beach on the outskirts of a tropical forest — an area far, far different than everything else he’d seen on the island so far. 

Indeed, this place seemed completely untouched in comparison. It was undeveloped, quiet looking and beautiful with its pure white sand, vibrant green backdrop, and crystal clear sparkling blue water, so clean and pure that even Levi had to admit it was tempting to jump into once they drew closer to the shore. Still, he wasn’t about to do it because it looked pretty deep, but that did not stop Erwin, who dove right in once they anchored near an outcropping of rocks that seemed to function as some kind of nature-made jetty, removing his jacket and disappearing so suddenly that it caused Levi, who had turned away for only a second, to whirl back around with wide eyes when he heard an unexpected loud splash behind him. 

“Fuck, what the hell are you doing?!” He called out, after he’d watched Erwin’s form — distorted and shimmering under the water — glide beneath the surface for a moment before his head popped up and he shook his blonde hair out like a dog. 

“Cooling off.” He replied with a smile, while Levi stared incredulously, biting his lip, too, because of how Erwin’s antics and cute looks made his stupid heart sing. “The water is nice.”

“Yeah, well, you’re gonna scare away all the fucking fish.” Levi replied, listening to Erwin’s laugh as he went over to get his fishing pole.

As he did, he looked back towards the beach, and noticed a small dock that stretched from the sands farther out into the ocean, a rickety looking thing that was the only sign of civilization in the entire area and where Levi suspected they would probably be heading to.

Sure enough, Erwin led him there after he finally climbed out of the ocean, wet and dripping and looking so delectable underneath the bright sunlight and blue skies that Levi did not even bother to try and stop himself from staring. 

“See something you like?” Erwin teased him from over his shoulder, raising an eyebrow and smiling playfully at Levi, who lowered his sunglasses and cocked his head and watched while Erwin leaned over to go through a box of gear. 

“Yeah.” He said, eyeing Erwin’s back muscles, how low his swim shorts hung on his hips, and the way that the saltwater looked drying over his tanned skin, wondering, too, what it would feel like to put his mouth there and slowly kiss away all of the droplets. “That fishing reel looks great.”

Laughing in response, Erwin took his pole and switched out the reel and the line, telling him that this was thicker and wouldn’t break as he attached the hook and then grabbed a rod of his own, too. Like that, they carried them — along with their bait and a cooler full of beer for just Levi, because he didn’t have to operate a boat — off the deck, over the rocks, and down the beach, walking ankle deep in the surf and chatting amicably until they finally both made it to the old dock. 

At that point, Levi was huffing from the heat and their journey through the sand, but actually could not complain, as he was starting to feel like he was on some sort of adventure — he could hear birds chirping and whistling in the forest behind him, and see small fish darting through the clear water along the dock — because of how isolated they seemed to be, thoroughly happy and enjoying himself and liking how it felt to be doing this all alone with just Erwin. 

Belatedly, he wondered if he was on some kind of a date. It was a nice thought, and although it made his heart feel undeniably full, as Levi watched Erwin set up their fishing poles, he knew that, either way and even  _ if  _ he didn’t catch any fish, the  _ last _ thing he could possibly end up being that day was disappointed. 


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Holy shit.” Levi breathed, as they both stood and stared down at the fish. “I can cook that.”
> 
> “Yes, you can.” Erwin replied, watching as Levi glanced up then to gaze at him, staring, for a moment, with a surprisingly open sort of awed expression before he bit his bottom lip and spoke.
> 
> “Thanks.” He said, causing Erwin to raise an eyebrow even as he smiled.
> 
> “Thanks.” He repeated. “For what?”
> 
> “For bringing me here.”

_ Please.  _ Erwin thought to himself.  _ Please let the fish be biting today.  _

Thankfully, his prayers — prayers made because he wanted to show Levi a good time, because he was going to feel dismayed and foolish if he had dragged Levi onto his boat and took him all the way out there for nothing — were answered, as it did not take long after they sat down together before their bait attracted some attention. Of course, it was his pole that got a nibble first,  _ his  _ pole that then bent and shuddered when Erwin jerked it to hook the fish, but that did not stop him from all but shoving it into Levi’s hands so quickly that he nearly caused the beer he’d been holding to be knocked aside and into the water. 

Somehow, though, he managed to grab it and the other pole and scramble up to move everything out of the way in time, smiling down at Levi who at first was so surprised that he seemed to not know what to do with himself. 

“Wha—

“Reel it in!” Erwin laughed at his confusion, at his wide eyes and parted lips and the way he then swore once he started to do what he’d been told. 

He looked so thrilled, Erwin thought, more thrilled than he’d seen him about anything else so far, and it made another big smile appear on his own face that he  _ knew _ wouldn’t be going away anytime soon. How could it, with Levi around? Although Erwin had met him just less than a week ago he didn’t know, as once he’d gotten Levi’s number he’d proven to be just as amazing as Erwin could have hoped for. 

He made it impossible for him to  _ not  _ smile, he thought. He made him laugh and feel butterflies and he had been  _ so  _ uncharacteristically  _ impatient  _ to see him again that he’d nearly burst with excitement once he finally did, once Levi had walked up looking impossibly cute with his pulled back bangs, oversized sunglasses, and pouty expression on the docks — one born from the fact that he’d apparently just lost quite a big fish. 

Because of that, Erwin had nearly melted and become overwhelmed with the desire to correct that for Levi, which was why they were there at the beach now, of course, a place where Erwin did not think he would soon forget the satisfied feeling he got when he watched Levi reel in what he had wanted. Once he had, once the fish was finally on the dock, he estimated that it was just under a foot long, perhaps smaller than the one that had gotten away from Levi, he thought, but certainly beyond large enough for him to eat. 

“Holy shit.” Levi breathed, clearly thinking the same thing as they both stood and stared down at it. “I can cook that.”

“Yes, you can.” Erwin replied, watching as Levi glanced up from the fish then to gaze at him, staring, for a moment, with a surprisingly open sort of awed expression before he bit his bottom lip and spoke.

“Thanks.” He said, causing Erwin to raise an eyebrow even as he smiled. 

“Thanks.” He repeated. “For what?”

“For bringing me here.”

_ Oh. _ Erwin thought, smiling softly because he was now  _ certain  _ that he had made Levi happy — just before he nodded and then gestured back towards the end of the dock where their fishing poles still were. “You’re welcome, Levi, but we’re not through yet. There’s more fish where that came from, I hope.”

Indeed, Erwin was already preparing to bait his line again with the intent to cast it back out, knowing that they had perhaps two hours there before they would need to get what they’d already caught back to the boat for storage. By then, he hoped, they would have reeled in several more, at least, so that Levi would have plenty for whatever kind of meal he wanted to make, although Erwin had to admit, he kind of wished Levi would stay for dinner so that they could cook the fish together on his boat. 

That would be fun, he thought, and amazingly enough, that  _ was  _ what happened, after they spent a few more hours at the beach first though, of course, joking and laughing while Levi drank beer, letting their legs dangle in the water — their toes, too, purposefully,  _ playfully  _ brushing up against each other’s feet under the surface while Erwin smiled to himself and looked away — as they sat next to each other on the dock and fished. Like that, they ended up with about 8 total, which, in Erwin’s opinion, was a good haul, as they were all decently sized and the kinds that he  _ knew  _ would be particularly delicious after being cooked on a grill.

With his mouth watering in the hopes that he would get to taste some, Erwin suggested they go, partly because Levi’s skin had started to look red enough to become concerning, too. He’d reapplied sunscreen about 30 minutes after they’d gotten there —  _ “I can help you with that,”  _ Erwin had said, only teasing but somehow ending up with the  _ pleasure  _ of being allowed to rub the lotion over the visible portions of Levi’s back — but it hadn’t seemed to help, and Erwin did not want him to get burned when he appeared to suffer so much from the heat already. 

He wasn’t used to it, Erwin thought,  _ clearly _ , as he looked exhausted and sweaty now in a way that he hadn’t reached himself, although it probably helped that he was willing to get into the water and Levi wasn’t. His phobia, or apprehension over what was in there or whatever it was, was somehow just as charming to Erwin as the rest of him — he was truly a city boy to the core, Erwin had realized — but he hoped that the weather and the humidity didn’t deter Levi from enjoying himself while they were together.

That was why, once  _ he  _ dove in again to cool off before they left, he could not resist giving Levi a splash while he remained on the dock, laughing loudly when Levi cursed him and then kicked water almost violently right back into his face in response.

“Quit it, bastard!” He said too, even as he snorted in obvious amusement while Erwin spit out saltwater. 

“What’s wrong?” Erwin teased back, unwilling to resist getting him just a little more wet, although much more gently and only up to Levi’s knees this time which earned him a mild, mock dirty look instead of more name calling. “Are you afraid I’m going to throw an eel at you?”

“No. You’re the one that’s gonna get his dick bit off by a fucking shark. Don’t expect me to jump in and save you while you’re getting attacked.” Levi replied, which caused Erwin to give him a playful pout as he bobbed up and down with the waves. 

“And after I said I would swim you to shore if you were drowning? How cruel, Levi.”

“Yeah, well, maybe you should’ve thought about that before you jumped in there and decided to become fish food.” 

With his eyes sparkling, Levi again kicked water in Erwin’s direction lightheartedly, causing him to laugh once more — just a second before he let his head slip under the surface again so that he could slowly sink down towards the bottom. Keeping his eyes open, he held his breath and stared up at Levi’s blurry form through the sea, watching as he peered over his knees at him and thinking that one day, before the summer was over and if they continued to see each other, he would convince Levi to wade in and come for an actual swim with him. 

Before that, though, they had to head back to the marina. There, they examined their catch again and discussed what to do with it, ending up — much to Erwin’s obvious delight — deciding to cook some for dinner right then and there after Erwin almost shyly proposed the idea, unafraid to do so, certainly, but not necessarily assuming that Levi would want to spend that much time with him already. After all, he wasn’t sure what it was that they were doing yet, but just knew that he wanted more, wanted to get closer to the refreshing, petite, beautiful man who made him feel almost dizzy with happiness to actually think about it. 

That being said, he was a bit guilty because it seemed that Levi  _ had  _ gotten burned, and badly enough for him to be uncomfortable. He looked bright red and grumbled, Erwin saw, wincing when he sat down or whenever something touched his arms but only muttering  _ ‘it was bound to fucking happen eventually’ _ when Erwin apologized, waving off his concern but still thankfully accepting a bottle of aloe from the inside of Erwin’s houseboat. He rubbed it on carefully while Erwin took the initiative to break down the fish and set up his grill, serving Levi some rum punch — stronger than beer, and at his request to take the edge off his sunburn — and unable to keep the smile off his face while working because he knew that Levi was watching him. 

“Let me help.” He said once Erwin had the charcoal ready, once he’d started laying out the corn and the other vegetables he’d decided to grill alongside the fish too.

Despite the fact that it seemed like Levi had apparently had enough booze to somewhat numb the pain of his burns, Erwin did his best to insist that he do all the cooking, rather liking the thought of preparing Levi dinner even though he suspected he had wanted to fix some of the fish himself too. Because of that, he gave in to Levi’s protesting quickly and watched him season it with salt, pepper, and lemon juice — all it needed, really, to be delicious because of how fresh it was from the ocean.

That being said, they  _ did  _ prepare a garlic butter sauce to dip it into, ending up just eating everything with their hands like that because it was quicker and the fish flaked so easily that they could. It was so good, Erwin thought, so  _ tasty  _ that he had to hold back a noise when he tried it and realized how it nearly melted onto his tongue, restraining himself only to look up suddenly and stop what he was doing when Levi let out a low, satisfied moan of his own after he’d tilted his head back and dropped the first piece of it into his mouth. 

Staring as he chewed and swallowed with wide eyes, Erwin felt lust flare up inside of him so suddenly it was as if someone had lanced a knife through his belly — a heavy, heated knife that made his skin prickle and flush all over. In fact, he knew he was blushing like Levi had done so many times, as he could feel the burn on his cheeks and suspected that something was showing on his face, something that did not get better when Levi noticed him looking, raised a brow, and did not hesitate to lick the butter off his fingers while Erwin tried and failed to not stare right in the direction of his mouth.

Because of that, he had half a mind to reach over and grab Levi’s wrist so that he could lean across the table to kiss him, wanting to know how Levi’s lips felt, what he tasted like, and if he would moan sweetly like that in Erwin’s ear were he to touch him just right with his hands. It wouldn’t be the first time that day that he’d had the thought, he knew, nor would it probably be the last, but despite how much it set him on fire to imagine, Levi was clearly a bit tipsy by then from all of the alcohol he’d consumed that day — alcohol which he was still drinking, and that Erwin had allowed himself to partake more of too now that he didn’t have to worry about operating his boat — and he did not want to take advantage.

“I take it the food is good, then?” Erwin just asked instead of taking the chance, only allowing himself to play more footsie with Levi underneath the table like they had done earlier when they’d been sitting at the dock. 

“Yeah.” Levi replied in a coy tone, biting his lip — this time in a failed attempt to hold back a tiny smile — before he nodded and let his eyes flicker back and forth from Erwin and his plate of food. “It’s not bad. Looks like you can fucking cook, and you’re not just some dumb blonde hunk after all.”

Obviously, because he knew that Levi was teasing, Erwin could not help but raise both his eyebrows at  _ that _ . “A  _ hunk? _ What are you saying, Levi?”

“What do you think I’m saying?”

“Well...it sounds like you’re admitting that you’re attracted to me. I thought you weren’t interested?”

“If you still think I’m not interested, I take it back. You’re shitty and you have less brains than I thought.”

Unable to hold his laughter in anymore, Erwin felt his heart pound with excitement too, experiencing such a large amount of happiness and butterflies that it was a wonder he didn’t start floating right there at the table. Levi thought he was attractive? He was interested in him? Although he had been relatively sure of both things for several days now, it was still nice to hear it out loud, to have Levi — who Erwin did not think said such things lightly — admit that he felt the same way Erwin did, and it was again all he could do to not pull him over and into his arms for a heated embrace. 

“I’m happy to hear that, Levi.” He just said instead, smiling softly and watching as Levi bit his lip and averted his eyes for a second. “I...like you too. You’re very beautiful to me, and—

Snorting loudly, Levi interrupted Erwin with a shake of his head. “What? I smell like a pig all the time because I can’t stop sweating, and I probably look like a goddamn tomato.”

“A cute tomato.” Erwin replied, because he could not necessarily disagree.

Levi’s face  _ was  _ rather red from the sun, but it didn’t do anything to hinder how gorgeous Erwin found him, nor did he think that Levi ‘smelled like a pig’ just because he happened to usually be sweating — especially when he was too, as it was impossible to control when it was always so hot on the island. That being said, he didn’t mind it, and suspected that if he were to stick his nose into the crook of Levi’s neck right then and there, he would end up rock hard and desperate from his scent in just a matter of seconds. 

“Whatever you say, Mr. Big-and-Fucking-Handsome.” Levi uttered, slurring a bit while Erwin fought to control his racing thoughts  _ and _ his overactive hormones, smiling across the table at Levi and then down at his food in a way that was admittedly probably a bit bashful. 

He couldn’t help it, not when Levi’s compliments made him feel as full of joy as they did, not when he was also a bit  _ awed  _ by them too, because due to the fact that he wasn’t a vain person to begin with in the slightest, he couldn’t deny that it amazed him that someone like Levi thought those kinds of things of him, so much so that he continued to sit there — pleased and flushed with happiness and smiling at him across the table — for the next few minutes, all while they both finished up their food and drink in a nice, comfortable silence. 

As they did so, Levi watched him too with bright, open eyes, a hidden smile behind them, Erwin thought, that was obvious to him even if he didn’t necessarily show it. For a while, they were unworried enough with conversation to just bask in the shared, warm glow of whatever it was that was slowly building between them — something that made Erwin undeniably excited about things that were surely, hopefully, to come. For that reason, he reminded himself to be patient when it came to the other things that he wanted, things that he would not do when he and Levi kept drinking as the late afternoon turned into evening anyway. 

He was so cute under the influence, Erwin thought, unable to deny it while he listened to Levi crack jokes and become more talkative — or at least, more expressive, because Levi wasn’t necessarily a quiet man, he had learned, despite the fact that he had seemed that way at first — even letting out an indelicate laugh a few times that had Erwin chuckling right along just from the sound of it. They spent another hour or two like that, just talking and teasing and flirting, having fun and relaxing until it unfortunately became time for Levi to say he should go. 

It was nearing dark by then, Erwin knew, 8:00 PM which was the time that the sun began to set behind the marina, casting the sky in deep oranges, reds, and pinks — a romantic setting for sure that caused Erwin to again resist the desire he had to seal what had truly been a perfect day with a kiss. Instead, though, he settled for holding Levi’s hand again while he walked him off his boat and out of the docks to his bike, standing there for a bit and lingering for as long as he could before he eventually,  _ unfortunately _ , had to send Levi off. 

“Wow. Nice bike.” Erwin joked first, though, once they reached it and once he saw that it was, for some reason, pink and sparkly and looking like it belonged to a small, pre-teen girl. 

“I don’t wanna hear it.” Levi mumbled, fumbling with the chain and making a face while Erwin let out a low chuckle. “You can’t say shit. You live on a fucking houseboat that looks like it was built by hippies.”

Immediately, Erwin fixed Levi with a pout at that — one that he could not keep up as he opened his mouth to continue teasing him again. “What’s wrong with hippies?”

“They’re disgusting. They smell, and don’t bathe.”

“Ah, well, I suppose I should be glad I’m not one then, since you apparently hate them so much.”

“I dunno. I’m not convinced you aren’t one. I’m pretty sure I still haven’t seen you wear a shirt, or shoes.” 

Raising his eyebrows at that, Erwin smiled both because of Levi’s teasing and because of the fact that...well, it was true. Even now, he was still barefoot despite the fact that they were walking down towards the road, but that sort of thing was common on the island for people like him, as what did he need a shirt and shoes for if he wasn’t inside? It was hot and he’d rather be comfortable, he thought, but still, he could understand how someone who lived in a city would find that to be a bit different. 

“I bathe, though.” Erwin replied with that in mind, unable to argue Levi’s point with anything else. 

“Are you sure?” Levi answered, squinting suspiciously. “I mean, do you bathe in the fucking ocean, or do you use an actual shower?”

Laughing at that, Erwin shook his head at Levi’s teasing. “I shower. I’m going to do so as soon as I get back to my boat, in fact.”

“Oh yeah?”

“Yes. And I think a better question is how  _ you  _ shower, because you know, an eel might come out of the faucet and—

Barely dodging a playful swat of Levi’s hand, Erwin reached out and managed to catch his fingers instead, smiling and — because he just couldn’t help doing this one, hopefully minor thing — bringing them up to his mouth for a kiss as he watched Levi bite his lip and suddenly lose all of his over the top, exaggerated venom. Indeed, instead of saying anything more he closed his mouth and swallowed, sliding his gaze in between Erwin’s eyes and where he held his hand as his face melted into a more open, docile, decidedly  _ warm  _ expression that made Erwin’s heart flutter. 

“Levi.” Erwin started then, feeling so struck with fondness all of a sudden that he couldn’t not say something, that he couldn’t  _ not  _ let the evening end without  _ at least _ telling Levi how much he’d enjoyed their time together as well as what it meant to him that he had gone out of his comfort zone and ridden along on his boat. “I had a lot of fun with you today. I’m happy that you agreed to come out on the boat, even if it did make you nervous.”

“Yeah...I mean, Erwin. Uh…” Levi mumbled, suddenly appearing a bit stricken by something himself — something that made it hard for him to figure out what he wanted to say, and that Erwin suspected would have had him blushing if his face wasn’t already so red from his sunburn. 

“I’d like to do it again sometime, if that’s alright with you.” Erwin continued, now feeling and  _ hearing  _ his pulse pound in his eardrums from the possibilities of what Levi might say. 

Obviously,  _ logically _ , he wanted to believe that Levi would say ‘yes’ because of how well that day had gone, but of course, there was that voice in the back of his mind saying  _ what if _ he didn’t. Fortunately, though, he did not have to worry about that for long, as Levi opened his mouth to reply almost before Erwin had even finished getting the sentence out.

“When?” He asked right away, his eyes lighting up so noticeably that it made Erwin’s widen in turn. 

“Ah...well…” He started, pausing to think about his schedule for a moment, to figure out the soonest possible time that he could see Levi again. Would suggesting tomorrow be too soon? He was free, but he didn’t want to come on too strong and scare Levi off. Still, he wasn’t even gone yet and Erwin was already feeling impatient for their next meeting, so he decided to take the chance and ask about it anyway, knowing, of course, that if Levi didn’t want to he would certainly tell him. “How about tomorrow? I don’t have anything to do, but if you do, or—

“That’s fine.” Levi interrupted, scoffing, delightfully enough, at Erwin’s apparently misguided attempts to be  _ agreeable _ . 

“Alright. Tomorrow then?” Erwin confirmed, smiling again and feeling his heart swell with excitement.

“Yeah. Just text me, okay?

“Okay. I will. Goodnight, Levi.”

“Night.”

With one last, lingering glance, Erwin stepped back and watched Levi push his bike away, giving him a friendly wave as he disappeared around the corner and began to head towards the road. Smiling to himself, Erwin felt that, although he had just said goodbye, it certainly wasn’t for good, and that somehow he had found himself on the path to finding something truly special.

  



	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Are you sure you’re comfortable with this, Levi?” Erwin asked him, after he’d arrived for what he was sure was a date this time — one that would be spent on Erwin’s boat, at night and alone out on the water near the beach they had gone to before. ‘It will be romantic,’ Erwin had said to him while proposing the idea, a comment that had made Levi’s insides flutter pleasantly despite everything else as he considered it. “We can stay at the dock, if you want."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i just want to again say thank you for all of the kudos and kind comments <3 i've been trying to respond to all of them but am not doing a very good job ;__; however, i really appreciate them all and i'm glad everyone likes the story so far!

By the time Levi got back home the sun had set, and there were so many mosquitos out that he knew there must be a fucking trail of the little shits following behind him. They attacked him, bit him, and made him itch, and as if that wasn’t awful enough, he was still sweaty, partially covered in sand, sunburned, and fucking exhausted, but...strangely, he wasn’t mad about it. Strangely, he didn’t care at all about the heat for once or any of the other bullshit he had to deal with on the island, because after that day, he was just too happy about Erwin and the time he’d spent with him to dwell on it. 

_ I like you too.  _ Erwin had told him earlier.  _ You’re very beautiful, Levi. _

What the fuck? Levi mused. Erwin thought he was  _ beautiful? _ Did he really, or had he just been saying that because he’d had too much to drink? Levi didn’t think so, but...well, no one had ever told him that before — or at least, they hadn’t like that, in a  _ romantic  _ way, with so much sincerity that it was a wonder he hadn’t just been stunned into silence. The fact that he’d had alcohol had probably helped with that, he knew, as it had certainly loosened his tongue and caused him to flirt more than he might have normally, but he didn’t regret it, not when Erwin had responded like that and when Levi already had plans to see him the next day, too. 

As eager as he was to be around him again, though, he woke up the next morning and felt like absolute shit from his stupid sunburn. It was worse than he’d realized, perhaps, because he’d gone to bed with the pain still numbed, and he’d almost thought he might puke after he’d dragged himself out of bed and eaten breakfast. For that reason, because his skin felt like it was raw and on fire, he was not exactly up to going out in the sun again right away, and so after some communication with Erwin, they ended up waiting until it was dark and decided to just meet at a place in town for food. 

It was a taco truck, apparently, that Erwin  _ swore  _ was good and that had amazing margaritas, margaritas that Levi thankfully felt at least better enough to partake in before their dinner was over because his stomach had settled. That being said, the evening was short and less adventurous in comparison to the day before, but Levi still had fun, and Erwin still told him things that made his already burning face burn even more as his feelings grew and threatened to make him become flustered. It was ridiculous, but also...Erwin was just so amazing, Levi thought. So sweet, and so earnest in his kindness and attentions that it made him fucking melt. 

Indeed, the guard he’d had up at the start of all this was nothing more than a joke now, he knew, but it didn’t bother him. He didn’t care. He wasn’t concerned about putting himself out on a limb because he felt Erwin was trustworthy, and instead, he just wanted more. He wanted to get closer and to let Erwin learn about him, too, unafraid at the prospect but  _ obviously  _ meaning that in more ways than one. Yes, although Levi would be stupid to think that this was just physical — he’d thought perhaps it might end up like that when they’d met, but it had not played out that way at all even if they had only known each other a week or so — he couldn’t deny that he didn’t want that too, because he did, and  _ badly _ .

In fact, he thought about it all the fucking time, moreso, though, in the days after they’d gone fishing at the private beach.  _ God, _ Levi wanted to kiss him. He wanted to run his hands all over Erwin’s glorious body and put his mouth on his skin, and he really, really wanted to grab him between the legs, too, because the teasing touches they’d exchanged so far were simply just  _ not  _ enough. That didn’t mean he didn’t like them either though, because he did. He liked linking his fingers with Erwin’s and he liked how their knees brushed together under the table at the taco truck because it was sweet, but it also made him imagine what it might feel like to have those same fingers digging into his hips, or to have that knee shoved between his legs while Erwin laid all of his large, surely heavy bulk on top of him. 

Did Erwin want those things too, Levi wondered? Although he asked himself, he was pretty sure that Erwin did, that he felt how the air between them was sometimes thick with an electric, heated tension too — one that honestly seemed like it could snap at the drop of a hat — but had just not yet made a move. Why, though? Was he just that much of a gentleman? Probably, Levi thought, based on what he sensed from him already, which, of course,  _ wasn’t  _ a bad thing. No, Levi appreciated that and it just made him like Erwin that much more, but...well, it was also no longer fucking necessary at all, and he had never been a patient person when it came to anything to begin with, much less this. 

That being said, though, Levi wondered if he might just have to take matters into his own hands and initiate things himself. For obvious reasons, the thought gave him a hot thrill that made him want to squirm, as although there were a few normal nerves too, he rather liked imagining himself taking Erwin by surprise by backing him into a wall or something and pressing their lips together. Still, despite that, he couldn’t just do that shit whenever he wanted. He would have to wait for the right time and he wasn’t sure when that would be, but thankfully, a few days later — after they’d met another time for drinks at a bar, and chatted for a few hours over the phone — it seemed that he might finally end up having a chance. 

“Are you sure you’re comfortable with this, Levi?” Erwin asked him, after he’d arrived for what he was  _ sure  _ was a date this time — one that would be spent on Erwin’s boat, at night and alone out on the water near the beach they had gone to before. _ ‘It will be romantic,’  _ Erwin had said to him while proposing the idea, a comment that had made Levi’s insides flutter pleasantly despite everything else as he considered it. “We can stay at the dock, if you want. I—

“Nah. Fuck that.” Levi interrupted, appreciating how gracious Erwin was in understanding that he might be uncomfortable with this, of course, but having already decided that he was far too excited about whatever was happening between him and Erwin to let it get in the way. 

Sure, the thought of being out over the ocean for longer than they had gone before — and at night, which for some reason made it all more daunting, perhaps because he would not be able to see anything — had filled him with quite a bit of apprehension initially, but he just swallowed it all down, forced himself to ignore it because he very fucking much wanted to do this with Erwin. It would be fun, he knew. It  _ would  _ be romantic, and they’d be isolated and alone, together and in a setting that Levi felt was  _ perfect  _ for him to try and attempt to get a kiss before the evening was over.

That being said, he just hoped the boat didn’t sink because then they would be lost at sea and he’d be floating in dark, deep water with who knew what the fuck swimming around them, which was his  _ real  _ fear, something that made his skin crawl to even think about, and—

_No._ Levi reminded himself. He wasn’t going to worry about it. Instead, he was just going to focus on Erwin, who looked like he had gotten a _haircut_ for fuck’s sake and was actually wearing real clothes this time, clothes that included a nice t-shirt, khaki shorts, and flip flops.

“Wow.” Levi said dryly, after he’d taken Erwin’s hand and hopped onto the boat with his help. “Look at you, handsome. You  _ do  _ own a shirt.”

“I told you.” Erwin replied, chuckling and running his thumb over Levi’s knuckles in a way that made him shiver. 

Staring up at him, Levi looked into Erwin’s eyes, down at his mouth and his lips and then back up again. Licking his own, he then gave Erwin’s hand a squeeze and walked towards where the life jackets were, feeling his heart pounding inside his chest while also being acutely aware of Erwin’s intense gaze nearly burning a hole through his back. In his belly, something stirred that made his throat go dry, and he suddenly ached so badly for Erwin to touch him that if he didn’t soon he was pretty sure he was going to fucking explode.

That being said, he had the ride out to worry about first. They had to leave the marina and travel over the sea to the beach again, and like before, Levi was content to wait inside the boat while that happened. Apparently, Erwin was just as content with that too, though, because once they got there, once the motor died down and Levi stopped holding his life jacket in a death grip because of how roughly they rocked in the water for a moment, Erwin wouldn’t let him out, and instead told him to wait while Levi watched his silhouette dart back and forth through the windows. 

What the hell was he doing? Levi hoped it wasn’t because something was wrong on the boat and he didn’t want him to see it, but thankfully, that wasn’t it at all. No, he realized once Erwin came and got him, he’d just been setting up for the dinner they’d be having, putting it all together while Levi had been inside to surprise him.  _ Shit, _ he thought, feeling his eyes widen when he saw it and realized that...well, when Erwin had said this would be  _ romantic _ , he hadn’t been fucking joking, and had apparently decided to pull out all the stops despite the fact that the setting alone would have probably already been enough to charm him anyway. 

Indeed, the furniture had been moved from where it normally sat up against the house wall to the edge of the deck, which would allow them to  _ really  _ overlook more of the water as they ate. There was a candle lit on the table too, Levi saw, and a lily in a jar, and their plates, napkins, and silverware had been laid out so nicely that it almost looked as if they were going to be dining at some sort of restaurant. In addition to that, Erwin had hung up small string lights all along the railing and there was low music playing from somewhere, and because of everything, all in all, the atmosphere was enough for Levi to just want to turn around and immediately throw himself right into Erwin’s arms.

His cheeks were flushed, in fact, and his throat felt tight, and his insides were full of so much happiness that he could hardly stand it, enough so that a small smile appeared on his lips that there was no way he would have been able to completely hold back.

“Do you like it?” Erwin asked after he had looked for a second — a pleased expression on his face, too, that let Levi know he clearly already suspected that he did. 

Unable to do much else right then except nod, though, Levi wrapped a hand around Erwin’s arm and stared, feeling flustered and warm at the thought that Erwin had done all of this for _him_. It was sweet, he knew, and thoughtful and, of course, fucking _amorous_ as shit — something that made it incredibly hard for Levi not to jerk Erwin down right then and there for a kiss. He wanted to badly because he wasn’t good with words, really, and couldn’t think of what to say to _truly_ convey how incredible this all was, but thankfully, his stunned silence seemed to be enough, because Erwin suddenly grinned down at him and placed his hand at the small of Levi’s back to lead him forward. 

“Please, have a seat.” He said, guiding Levi towards the table so that he could help him sit down. 

Although it wasn’t necessary, of course, it was charming, and by the time he’d gotten settled Levi had found his voice again, scoffing loudly and shaking his head just as Erwin began to pull away.

“What are you now, a waiter?” He teased, listening as Erwin chuckled and kissed his fingers quickly before letting them go.

“For the moment, yes.” Erwin responded, walking across the deck and coming back with a bottle of wine. 

He opened it easily and poured Levi a glass, murmuring to him that he would be right back with their food before he disappeared inside the boat. Biting his lip, Levi tried to peek in to see what he was getting but ended up looking around the deck again instead, admiring the decorations and basking in the warm, tranquil, and intimate atmosphere that Erwin had created, unable to deny that the string lights looked...well, fucking pretty in the way that they reflected off the dark water. 

In fact, while gazing out at it he actually felt very little wariness at all for once, instead finding the gentle rocking of the boat and the way the small swells sounded splashing against the hull to, strangely enough, be a bit relaxing, although he was certain that the overall ambience of the deck contributed to that a great deal. The dim lighting — the table and their surroundings only illuminated by the glowing string lights and the moon and stars above them — was peaceful, as was the quietness that really made Levi aware of the fact that he and Erwin were very much alone.

Of course, he thought, they’d been alone before. They’d been to the beach they were now anchored a mile or two in front of just a few days ago and there had been no one there, but this was different. It seemed more serious, and made this thing growing between them definitely feel more  _ real  _ because of the clear effort Erwin had taken to make it all special — something that became even more apparent when it was revealed to him that they would be having boiled crab legs for dinner too. 

“What the...did you buy this shit?” Levi asked once Erwin had brought everything out, knowing that crab legs were, of course, not especially cheap and Erwin wasn’t exactly made of money. 

“Sort of.” Erwin replied though, fixing Levi with a smile as he set up a large pot on his grill. “I sold the leftover fish we caught and used the money from that.”

_ Oh. _ Levi thought, raising an eyebrow and  _ supposing  _ that was okay if it covered the price of the crab — even though he’d basically had to force Erwin to keep all the money from the fish himself, as he’d offered several times to split it with Levi who  _ knew  _ Erwin deserved and needed it more — but all things being said...well, he was pretty sure it fucking didn’t. “Shit, you got enough? Money, I mean.”

“Mostly.”

“Mostly? Erwin, you—

“It’s okay, Levi. It’s worth it to me.”

Although Levi had been about to tell Erwin he didn’t have to do that, he was interrupted, and remained silent at Erwin’s words because they made him blush — especially when the soft expression on Erwin’s face made Levi sure of what he actually meant by that. 

“I wanted to make tonight special.” He confirmed, as if it wasn’t already noticeable from everything he had done so far. 

“Oh?” Levi replied, though, slinging an arm over the back of the chair as he watched Erwin get their food ready by his grill. He eyed him, and raised an eyebrow, and took a sip of his wine, feeling a renewed sense of excitement course through his veins all over again because of his response. “And why is that?”

“Just because, Levi.”

“Just because what?”

“Well, first of all, I couldn’t waste the opportunity once you agreed to come out on the boat again.” Erwin murmured, walking over — now that their crab pot was boiling and Erwin had added the legs to it and all they needed to do was wait — to have a seat with him so that he could drink some water. “And...I suppose I wanted to be alone with you.”

Swallowing at that, Levi leaned forward over the table, planting his elbows onto it and letting his eyes lower to stare at Erwin’s mouth again after he took a sip from his glass, at his beautifully shaped, full lips that he imagined would feel positively luscious and sinful against his own. Wanting to do it, to stand up and close the remaining distance between them as his thoughts again returned to the kiss that he could  _ barely  _ stop picturing, he only managed to refrain because he heard the boiling pot whistling behind Erwin, still wondering after he got up to check it, though, if Erwin was thinking the same exact shit as he was.

Why else would he want to be alone with him, Levi wondered? Although he knew it couldn’t be the  _ only  _ reason because they both liked each other in general, he found it hard to believe that Erwin wasn’t thinking about kissing — or even fooling around — with him too, because it hadn’t escaped his notice how Erwin’s eyes lingered over places on his body other than his face either. No, he knew Erwin looked at him and had even caught him staring at his ass once, and in general, because of all their flirting and the fact that he’d already admitted it, Levi was pretty sure that Erwin knew he thought he was attractive too.

Still, though, was  _ he  _ going to do it? Was he going to make a move? As much as Levi liked to imagine himself throwing his arms around Erwin’s neck and planting their lips together, he also liked the thought of Erwin grabbing his wrist, jerking him forward, and holding him still so that he could give him a crushing kiss that would take Levi’s breath away also. Having to shift in his seat at how the image seemed to make flames flare up in his belly, Levi drank more wine and decided that either way, he was not getting off this fucking boat until he knew what Erwin tasted like. 

“Funny.” Levi said with that in mind, responding to Erwin’s comment once he had reached the grill. “I was thinking the same shit about you.”

The way Erwin stared at him intently over his shoulder at that — instead of just flashing him the gorgeous smile he might have expected normally — was telling, Levi thought. Feeling so impossibly excited all of a sudden that his pulse was pounding like a drum, Levi bit his lip and then stared down into his wine glass, shifting in his seat and wondering if he was even going to make it through dinner. Even so, he more than managed once it was all ready, as of course, he enjoyed Erwin’s company in general and the lively conversation that they had while eating, and not to mention the food, which was even more fucking delicious than he’d imagined it was going to be in the first place. 

Tasting it — after cracking the legs open to get the meat, and again dipping it into a garlic lemon butter sauce — Levi could have practically swooned in happiness, completely uncaring that it was all incredibly messy to eat because it was more than fucking worth it. Indeed, by the end of it there was a huge pile of discarded, empty crab legs on the table, and Levi had gone through more napkins than he’d been able to count. He’d licked his fingers and Erwin had spilled sauce and had to change his shirt, and together they’d both eaten until they were absolutely stuffed, so much so that Levi was honestly not sure if he would be able to move once they had finally finished their meal. 

Still, he managed after a bit, mainly because he wasn’t about to let Erwin clean it on his own, noticing while he helped, though, that Erwin kept glancing upward towards the top of his houseboat. What was he looking at, Levi wondered? Was something up there? He knew there was a ladder on the other side that led up to it, he thought, did he need to go up there and check?

Sort of, Levi discovered, as after they had finished cleaning and washed up from their messy dinner, Erwin again reached out to take his hand before Levi could sit back down, smiling and almost actually looking a bit bashful as he opened his mouth to speak again. 

“Levi.” He murmured, while gesturing towards the roof of his boat. “I have another surprise for you up top. Will you come with me?”


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “I just really like kissing you, Levi." Erwin said. "I think I could do it all night.”

Although Erwin could not know what Levi was thinking for sure,  _ his  _ thoughts had become quite focused on the idea of finishing their night with a kiss too, so much so that he had planned this entire evening with the hope that it would end in the best way possible: with Levi in his arms, wrapped up and pressed against him while Erwin showed him just  _ how much _ he liked him in the way that he felt Levi truly deserved. 

Of course, to him, Levi deserved everything  _ else  _ he’d done for their date too, as he hadn’t just gone to all that trouble with the food and the table setting and the lights because he only wanted something physical. No, he’d wanted to make Levi happy and feel special in general, he thought, because as much as he  _ did _ want the kiss, it wouldn’t be the end of the world if it didn’t happen. In his mind,  _ all _ of this was worth it whether he got one or not — just like he’d told Levi earlier — as long as it meant...well, that he impressed him and swept Levi off his feet so that they could keep continuing to do this, which was what would  _ really _ make Erwin happy more than anything else. 

Still, though, his attraction to Levi at that point was so strong that he could barely even take his eyes off him for one second, and he’d become undeniably impatient to find out what would transpire before the night was over, enough so that after they had cleaned up from dinner together he did not waste any time before he was inviting Levi up to the roof of his houseboat, hoping as he did so, though, that the new location was not somewhere that would end up making Levi uncomfortable. He seemed pretty relaxed by then, Erwin thought, and not too bothered by their surroundings, but he knew that the roof might be different, as it was farther above the water and even with the railing might seem a bit precipitous to those who weren’t used to it. 

That was why Erwin only planned on being still up there, though, and why he’d tossed a rolled up blanket over the edge while he’d been setting everything up for dinner earlier and Levi had waited inside. Intending to spread it out once they climbed up so that they could look at the stars together, Erwin felt it would be the perfect, romantic end to what he had tried to make a perfect, romantic evening, and perhaps because of that, he found himself with a stomach full of fluttering nerves as he gently told Levi that he had another surprise for him. Once they got up there, he knew, it would be ‘now or never,’ so to speak, because when they climbed down it’d probably be time to head back to the marina and whatever mood he’d managed to create would be over. 

Obviously, though, before he would worry about any of  _ that _ , Levi’s comfort level was, of course, his main concern.  

“Are you alright with climbing up here?” Erwin asked after he’d led him around to the ladder and headed up himself, leaving Levi staring at him from down below with a very tight frown on his very adorable face. “If not, it's okay. I—

“It’s fine.” Levi interrupted, biting his bottom lip — something that was nearly enough to make Erwin groan with need at that point — while he averted his eyes and appraised the ladder with an amusingly suspicious expression. 

Eyeing it up and down, he took another moment before he apparently decided it was safe, or not going to make the boat sink or whatever it was that he was thinking, and reached out to wrap his fingers around one of the bars, climbing up after Erwin in a surprisingly quick fashion so he could then crawl atop the roof of his boat. Now, Erwin thought, he was sitting beside him and had noticed the blanket he’d picked up to roll out, watching with bright, curious eyes as he did just that while giving Levi a soft smile. 

“I thought you might like to look at the stars.” Erwin told him then. “I know you’re from the city, and out here away from town you can see a lot more.”

It was true. Although the island in general certainly had less lighting than a metropolis, a short 15 minute ride like the one they’d taken would allow them an even better, far more spectacular view of the night sky than anywhere else. Honestly, Erwin had spent time stargazing by himself over the years because he found it relaxing, but this was different. This was with Levi, and he looked so beautiful underneath the moonlight right then that it almost took his breath away, so ethereal, in a way, because of how it made his skin seem to glow and the way it reflected across his eyes, painting his black hair silver and causing Erwin’s brain to nearly short circuit when — after he moved to lie down on the blanket — Levi followed suit and crawled over to stretch out on his back beside him. 

He was so  _ close _ suddenly, Erwin thought, that he swore he could feel the heat coming off his body, but even so, they weren’t touching, and it made Erwin’s mouth go dry to imagine what it would be like to have Levi pressed against him. Wanting to wrap an arm around him, he refrained for the moment, instead only moving in just the slightest to brush his fingers along Levi’s, opening his palm and smiling to himself when Levi readily grabbed onto his hand and held on. 

“You’re a cheesy bastard, you know that?” He murmured quietly to him too, teasing, of course, and causing Erwin to let out a small laugh. 

“Are you complaining?” He asked, hearing Levi snort beside him as he glanced up at the sky. 

“Not yet. Should I be?”

“In my opinion, no.” 

“Okay. Show me some stars then, big guy.”

“Alright. Have you seen the Milky Way before?” Erwin murmured, allowing his head to fall to the side a bit so that he could glance at Levi’s face. 

Watching him shake his head no, he had to force himself to look away again and not stare, to  _ not  _ forget about the stars in favor of admiring Levi’s gorgeous profile, his long, dark lashes and his adorable, slightly upturned nose, and, of course, the shape of his pouty, pink lips, lips that Erwin thought he might  _ die  _ if he didn't eventually get to—

“See that band of light?” Erwin said then, swallowing and ignoring his stray thoughts while lifting an arm so that he could gesture at the sky. 

Unfortunately, it was the one that he’d been holding Levi’s hand with, but...well, it didn’t seem to matter, because was he imagining things, or had Levi scooted infinitesimally closer even as his gaze followed where Erwin was pointing? He didn’t think so, because if he were to lie his arm back down where it had been before it would end up resting atop Levi’s shoulder — something that made his heart skip a rather quick beat in excitement. Smiling to himself again, Erwin just bent his elbows and put his hands behind his head this time, staring up at the clusters of stars and pondering whether he would get lucky enough for Levi to end up against his side on his own.

“Yeah.” Levi said, responding to his question before Erwin could figure it out. “I see it.”

“That’s it. It’s the arm of our galaxy.”

“Hm…” Levi made a sound in his throat as if he was thinking, still staring up at the sky even while he suddenly tilted his head to the side so that it was touching the bottom of Erwin’s bicep.

Remaining silent for another moment after that — Erwin did too, as he was busy marveling over how soft Levi’s hair felt against his skin — he suddenly rolled over faster than Erwin could even blink, sidling up beside him and throwing his arm over Erwin’s chest so hard that he might have grunted or jolted out of surprise if he also hadn’t been so  _ ready _ for it. 

“It’s kind of fucking cold out here.” Levi murmured then, resting his head just underneath Erwin’s chin while his heart sang and while he struggled to hold back a loud laugh at Levi’s silly excuse — one that would have been impossible to believe no matter what, as the tropical, summer night was about as balmy and warm as it could  _ ever _ possibly get. 

“Cold?” He still replied though, teasing and not even wasting a single second, of course, before he was wrapping his arms around Levi so that he could hold him like he wanted. “You should have said something sooner.”

“Why? You wanted me in your fucking arms that bad?”

“Well...yes.” 

Erwin could not have lied or joked about that if he’d wanted to. No, even if he hadn’t been hoping for this type of thing to happen for a few days now — he didn’t think he had  _ ever  _ felt such a strong yearning for another man before, somehow — he would have been hard pressed to not be over the moon now, as Levi felt so perfect resting up against him like this that it was all he could do not to sigh out loud in bliss. 

He was warm, Erwin thought, and solid in his arms, and he could smell the clean scent of shampoo coming from where his head was currently tucked right under his chin. With a hand on his shoulder and the other resting over Levi’s waist — and the fingers of one of Levi’s smaller ones curled gently against the front of his t-shirt — Erwin almost forgot why they were even lying there to begin with, only managing to remember when Levi suddenly moved to point out a very bright star in the night sky above them. 

“So what’s that one, then?” He asked, speaking so quietly that it was all Erwin could do to hear him over the watery sounds of the nearby ocean.

“The North Star.” Erwin replied, unable to resist shifting his palm so that he could rub it over the expanse of Levi’s back. 

Humming — or purring almost, Erwin thought,  _ honestly  _ — Levi just took a moment to stare at the sky again before he curled even closer, lifting his knee a bit so that it was resting over the top of Erwin’s thigh comfortably. “There’s so many.”

“Yes. I told you.”

“What else is there? Constellations?” 

At Levi’s questioning, Erwin continued to point out things for a while, and they spent the next half an hour, perhaps, just talking and laughing and looking at the stars together, lying there in each other’s arms and enjoying the company in a way that was nice enough for Erwin to forget about what could possibly come next — at least almost. He hadn’t completely lost the urge to kiss Levi, of course, but he was rather content right then as well, warm and relaxed and still amazed at how it felt to hold Levi, so much so that he closed his eyes once the conversation had comfortably lapsed for a bit and just listened to the sound of his breathing there beside him.

“Erwin.” Levi said eventually, though,  _ apparently _ having other plans himself as he suddenly shifted against Erwin’s chest and swallowed loudly. 

“Hm?”

“I... _. _ listen. _ ” _

Chuckling at that, at how Levi now sounded nervous and insistent at the same time, Erwin rubbed at his shoulder encouragingly and smiled, feeling his stomach flip a bit as well because it seemed like this — whatever it was — was going to be serious and  _ important _ . “I’m listening.”

“I wanna tell you something.”

“Alright. Go ahead, Levi.”

“Okay. I just...here’s the deal: I...I really like doing stuff with you, Erwin. I mean, this kind of shit, and everything else.”

“Me too, Levi.”

“Well...can we keep doing it then?”

Although Levi’s words made Erwin impossibly happy — he did not intend to respond with anything  _ other _ than yes, of course, as he assumed that this was Levi’s way of asking if they could continue dating — he paused at that, as he’d sensed that Levi had tilted his head back a bit from where it now rested in the crook of Erwin’s arm so that he could peer up into his face. Feeling himself suddenly become almost hyper aware of how close Levi’s mouth was to his own because of that, Erwin’s throat went dry and his heart skipped a beat, but despite that, despite the fact that his mind had begun to race and he was honestly kind of nauseous with nerves, he somehow still managed to know exactly what to do, and realized that...well, that if this went right, then it was probably the moment that he had so  _ desperately  _ been waiting for all night. 

“Yes.” He breathed out at that thought, letting his head fall to the side so that he could stare into Levi’s eyes, speaking in barely more than a whisper, too, as he immediately took in Levi’s red face, earnest expression, and parted lips, lips that Erwin found himself blatantly staring at now for far longer than just a single second. 

No, he thought, he couldn’t look away, not this time and not until he felt Levi’s hand on the back of his neck, anyway, and he realized that Levi was doing the exact same thing, that his gaze was shifting between Erwin’s mouth and his eyes and his chest was rising and falling quickly in excitement as if he couldn’t catch his breath, and that he was holding on to him tightly, holding out, too, for Erwin to not be a fool and read the signs and to take what was now so obviously being presented to him like he wanted.

“Levi.” He murmured then, ignoring how hard his heart was hammering against his ribcage and moving quickly — springing into action this time without any hesitation whatsoever, as if he was suddenly acting only on instinct — to gently roll them both over.

Moving so that Levi was on his back again, Erwin shifted onto his side and leaned over him — a change in position that allowed him to see Levi’s expression better and to  _ really  _ look into his eyes. They were wide and bright, Erwin saw, and surprisingly readable, the both of them full of longing in a way that just made Erwin’s pulse pound that much faster, that made him feel impossibly excited as he searched Levi’s expression one last time for any sign that he might not want what he was about to do. Bringing a hand up to cup Levi’s cheek, he checked just in case but saw none, and instead only caught the half-lidded look that crossed Levi’s features as he  _ licked his lips  _ and Erwin found himself gently brushing his thumb across the bottom one.

Unable to resist the way his entire body was  _ screaming _ at him to kiss Levi at that point, Erwin shut his eyes and just _...did it, _ closing the distance between them even as he felt Levi slide his fingers into his hair and pull him down as well, making a needy sound in the back of his throat, Erwin thought, as soon as their lips were finally pressed together and they were embracing. Despite that, though, despite their eagerness and the fact that the noise made Erwin’s blood feel as if it was suddenly on fire, they both actually paused for a moment like that with their eyes closed, staying still as if they needed to get their bearings or make sure this really was okay until Levi suddenly opened his mouth, exhaling in something like relief before he threw his arms over Erwin’s shoulders in an effort to drag him even closer. 

He dug his fingers into his t-shirt, in fact, and all but melted beneath him, but Erwin was too busy moving his jaw and responding to Levi in kind to focus on it for long, suddenly feeling so overwhelmed by how his taste flooded over his tongue — he’d slipped it into Levi’s mouth as soon as he had parted his lips, effectively giving Erwin  _ permission  _ — that he nearly felt dizzy. Levi’s breath was just...so sweet, he thought, heady and intoxicating to him in a way that he did not think even wine could ever actually be, and coupled with how warm and wet and soft everything felt while they continued to kiss, Erwin was hard pressed not to let out a moan louder than the noise that Levi had already made before. 

Somehow managing to stay quiet, though, he just drew his brows down as if to concentrate, feeling himself gradually become lost in it while every other aspect of their surroundings disappeared from his focus and instead just shrunk down to  _ Levi _ . Levi, who moved his lips over Erwin’s so eagerly that it threatened to take Erwin’s breath away every time, who held onto him tightly as if the last thing he wanted to do was let go, and who felt so pliant beneath Erwin that it was all he could do to not climb on top of him and ruck his t-shirt up over his belly like some kind of hungry animal. He wanted to touch Levi, he thought, but still, despite that, he kept his hand on his arm or his waist for the most part, as the last thing he wanted to ever do was overstep, and although their mouths were eager and their kisses deep and steady, he did not truly feel as if he was in a hurry, as this was good too and he did not want it to end any time soon. 

Thankfully, Levi did not seem like he wanted this to stop either, but it was  _ him _ who — after they’d remained like that, just making out and holding onto each other for what  _ had _ to be at least 10 minutes — eventually started to indicate that he might like more, gradually beginning to squirm a bit under Erwin and rub his hands over his shoulders and chest, breathing quite heavily in between kisses while Erwin was prompted to shove a knee in between his already open legs. Allowing his fingertips to tickle at the skin of Levi’s side underneath the hem of shirt, too, he felt his heart jump in excitement when Levi suddenly bit at his bottom lip, brushing his thumbs over his nipples the next time his palms slid over Erwin’s chest in a movement that may or may not have actually been on purpose. 

Erwin couldn’t tell for sure, but either way, it made him grunt a bit and squeeze at Levi’s side, licking into his mouth more aggressively and shifting to press himself harder against the top of Levi’s body as he did so. Reaching around a second later, too, in an attempt to slide his palm closer to Levi’s ass, their increasingly heated embrace was unfortunately interrupted by the wind, which chose that exact moment to pick up from the light breeze they’d had all night into something much harder, gusting, suddenly, in a way that caused Erwin’s boat to list to the side a bit and then let out a loud creak as it’s weight was pulled taut against that of the anchor. 

Although to him what had just happened was basically nothing, as soon as Levi heard the sound he jumped and then all but bolted upright into a sitting position before Erwin could even tell what was going on, moving so suddenly, in fact, that Erwin fell backward to land on his shoulders as he was all but shoved aside. Letting out a loud laugh that he couldn’t control a moment or two later, though — after he’d realized what happened, and mostly because of the way that Levi was looking around wildly like they were under attack — he pushed himself up onto his elbows and watched as Levi then rounded on him, clicking his tongue and wearing a deep scowl that melted when he found himself face to face with Erwin again and seemed to remember what it was that they’d just been doing. 

“It’s alright.” Erwin said, smiling and reaching out to grasp Levi’s hand before he continued. “The boat does that sometimes, just like real houses do.”

“Yeah, well, real houses aren’t floating over the goddamn water.” Levi muttered, tangling his fingers with Erwin’s despite his complaining while he bit his lip.

Eyeing him for a moment, he looked Erwin up and down once and then let his gaze linger on his mouth like he’d done earlier, only hesitating for a brief moment this time, however, before he slowly, carefully leaned closer so that he could give him another kiss. In comparison to what they’d been doing before, this one was just a peck — light and sweet and quick — but it did lead to more, which gradually resulted in Erwin lying Levi back down on the blanket. He leaned over him again, of course, as they renewed their embrace and continued to press their lips together, but this time, even though they stayed like that for several more minutes, things remained lazy and calm and Erwin could tell that the mood from earlier was gone. 

That was alright, though; he wasn’t complaining, as the last thing he wanted, obviously, was for Levi to be uncomfortable, and he worried that was now the case because the wind had gusted a few more times while they’d been lying there and Erwin could tell he hadn’t returned to his previously relaxed state. The noise of it distracted him, he thought, and Erwin figured that it was probably about time for them to head in because of that, but still, it was hard for him to extricate himself from Levi’s arms when he felt so amazing and perfect beneath him. 

“What?” Levi asked him, after he’d managed to pull away just a bit though and smiled, finally finding himself able to brush Levi’s hair out of his eyes like he’d wanted to that very first night he’d come aboard Erwin’s boat. 

“Nothing.” Erwin replied, staring at him for a moment longer before he kissed Levi’s nose, knocking their foreheads together gently when Levi lolled his head to the side a bit to more easily face him. “I just really like kissing you. I think I could do it all night.”

“Yeah?” Was Levi’s answer to that, a small, almost mischievous twinkle appearing in his eyes as he pressed their lips together quickly and slid his arms back over Erwin’s shoulders. 

_ “Yeah.” _

“All night is a long time.”

“I know...and I’m still not sure it would be enough.”

“Yeah, well, there’s a lot of other shit I’d like to do with you all night besides just kissing.”

“Oh. Is that so?”

“Yeah, but...somewhere else.” 

Watching Levi bite his lip at that, Erwin observed how his brows drew down too, how he seemed to look concerned while he briefly searched his expression as if he feared he’d said something wrong. It was either that, Erwin thought, or he wasn’t sure if Erwin wanted the things he was implying too — something that was absolutely ludicrous, as Erwin was now twice as happy, thrilled, and aroused as he had already been before. 

That being said, though, he was not necessarily offended or anything if Levi meant that he didn’t want to fool around on his boat in the middle of the ocean, because it was probably not a good idea anyway, but...well, did that mean they could resume what they’d been doing when they got back to the dock? Erwin did not want to be presumptuous at all, but if he didn’t mean that either, then where else were they supposed to go?

“Alright...but where?” Erwin asked at that thought, offering Levi an encouraging smile before he shifted to kiss his cheek. “It doesn’t matter to me, but—

“I was thinking.” Levi started, opening his mouth and then closing it again as Erwin raised an eyebrow. 

He was thinking, Erwin wondered? Thinking about  _ what? _

“Why don’t you come over to my place tomorrow night? I have the guesthouse and shit, and...I mean, you can eat dinner with us if you want. My weird, shitty family will be there, but afterward we’ll have privacy, and a nice bed, and we can...uh—

“We can what, Levi?” Erwin replied then, unable to help teasing him in that moment because Levi was flushing something fierce, and also because he really,  _ really  _ could not contain his curiosity over just what exactly it was that he was proposing. 

He hadn’t been clear, of course, when he said he wanted to do ‘other things’ with Erwin moments before, and could have meant anything from just removing their shirts to actually having sex. Obviously, Erwin would be happy with whatever it was that Levi meant, but still, he felt uncharacteristically impatient to know, and was not disappointed when — after hesitating for just another second — Levi swallowed, cradled his head in his hands to pull him closer, and then brushed his lips over his ear, whispering one, single word into it that made Erwin feel as if his heart had suddenly stopped beating inside his chest: “Fuck.”

“...fuck?” Erwin still repeated, though, breathing out the question and almost quivering with the sudden rush of desire that Levi had brought upon him, struggling even to speak that much while Levi nibbled at his earlobe and then mouthed a hot, wet kiss over the sensitive skin underneath it. 

“Mm.” He hummed, in what Erwin assumed was an affirmative response to his question — a question that had only been asked because he hadn’t really been expecting Levi to up the ante like that, and had almost not been able to believe it. “Yeah. I mean...if you want to. If you don’t, I  _ guess  _ I can fucking wait and jerk off or something, but—

“ _ No.  _ No...I mean, that’s...that’s fine. I’d like that, Levi. I do want you, but...are you sure?” Erwin replied, because as much as he wasn’t lying, he did want to just make sure that Levi was certain, as they had only just kissed for the first time and the last thing he wanted to do was pressure him.

“Yeah. You can drop that ‘gentleman’ shit now, by the way. I mean...it’s nice and all, and you’re sweet, but fuck, you make me really goddamn horny and—

At that, Erwin could not help it: he laughed, mostly because...well, because he felt the exact same way, but would probably not be able to put it into words as adorably as Levi actually had just then. 

“ _ I _ make  _ you  _ horny?” He asked, though, smiling widely and now taking the chance to reach around as much as he could in an attempt to squeeze Levi’s ass. “You should talk. Do you know how long I’ve been wanting to kiss you?”

“I dunno. If it’s as long as I have, then we probably would have already fucked by now too.” Levi replied, snorting and squirming teasingly beneath Erwin’s weight. 

“Maybe.” Was Erwin’s answer, uttered as he cupped Levi’s cheek again and looked him over, giving him a gentle, lingering kiss now as if to make up for it. “But it doesn’t matter now, does it?”

“No. Does that mean you’re saying ‘yes’ to coming over, though?”

“Yes. Of course I’ll come over. I think I’d be crazy to say no.”

“Yeah, well, you might change your mind once you meet my family.”

“I’m sure your family will be fine.” 

Levi rolled his eyes at that — as if he didn’t believe Erwin at all — but regardless, Erwin was not worried about that in the least. Even if his family was insane as he’d implied, he wouldn’t care, because Levi obviously wasn’t, and he was the only thing that Erwin wanted in every which way possible no matter what. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :3


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What exactly was he supposed to do, Levi wondered, if he fell in love with this guy and then he had to leave?

The next day, Levi woke up to rain, rain, and more rain, as well as thunder and lightning and wind — storms that had been blown in by the small gusts that he’d experienced the night before on Erwin’s boat. Although  _ that  _ had been mildly terrifying to him for a moment or two, he had to admit that Erwin’s presence in general had done a lot to make him feel safer. True, he’d been relieved when they’d gotten back to the docks eventually, he thought, but lying there with Erwin had caused him to calm down so he at least wasn’t panicking because of the image he’d conjured up of the boat tipping all the way over, but of course, the fact that they’d been making out right before that was  _ certainly  _ a good distraction too.

Yes, there was no way for Levi to deny that when he continued to be caught up in the memory of it for the entire rest of the night after he’d gotten home, too, as well as the realization that it was the first thing he fucking thought of after he woke up in the morning. Honestly, though, he didn’t mind, not at all, not after Erwin had made him feel so many things  _ other  _ than just safe. Excitement, lust,  _ bliss _ ; that was the nicer way of putting it instead of ‘goddamn horny’ like he’d told Erwin, however, he had wanted to make sure that he’d gotten his fucking point across because he really just did not want to wait unless he had to. 

Sure, he appreciated how sweet and slow things had been so far, but the way Erwin had kissed him last night, the way he’d held him, and smelled so good, and felt all warm and big on top of him, too, had been even better than he’d expected, and he did not want to tiptoe around it like they’d done with the kiss when he now knew how much they’d clearly both wanted it. That being said, he just did not know how he felt about doing it on Erwin’s boat in general, though, as he’d thought it had been obvious there was no way he was going to fuck out in the middle of the shitty ocean in the first place. 

He was far too tense for that, he knew, as no matter how safe Erwin made him feel he just did not think he’d be able to relax his asshole enough with the constant fear of drowning while sharks circled around him in the back of his mind, but that didn’t mean he necessarily wanted to do it back at the marina, either. No, Erwin’s boat — which he didn’t hate, he told himself, he  _ didn’t _ — was just so fucking tiny and an absolute mess of clutter on the inside, and the bed was nothing more than a single mattress lying on a rickety looking wire frame that he wasn’t even sure how Erwin could fit on by himself, much less with another person.

At least it was separated off from the main ‘room,’ but Levi  _ still  _ didn’t know how Erwin could stand it, although regardless of that, there was the problem of how close to the dock it seemed to him too, how public the entire area felt because of the people constantly walking around there and the fact that Erwin’s boat did not have any curtains over the windows — windows which could be looked down into because of the height of the walkway in comparison to the house. Sure, he knew, they were small and at night they would probably not be seen if it was dark inside, but...well, Levi just wanted absolute privacy, as well as a soft mattress, good air conditioning, space to stretch out and roll around, and the ability to fuck in any position that he wanted without having to worry about injuring himself because of the damned bed collapsing.

Was that too much to ask? No, because he had suspected — and was right about — the fact that Erwin would be happy to come to his place. The only problem was actually his family as he’d said, or really, his stupid Uncle Kenny, who Levi knew had probably not been sober for one single moment since they’d arrived on the fucking island. He was a loudmouth and annoying as shit even when he wasn’t drunk, Levi thought, and he had always been hesitant to bring  _ anyone  _ he knew around him, much less a romantic interest, because of the high potential for horrible, mortifying embarrassment. 

Still, he’d warned Erwin, right? Maybe a little, but either way, if he got laid that night and got to see Erwin naked than it would definitely be worth it, but perhaps, too, they would get lucky and Kenny would skip out on dinner because he’d passed out somewhere or Uri had decided to drag him into town. It wouldn’t be the first time, but alas, those notions proved to be only wishful thinking once Levi got himself out of bed that morning and made his way into the main house so that he could tell his mother. 

“Mom.” He mumbled, stifling a yawn as he shuffled into the kitchen and immediately spotted her drinking a mimosa. 

She was seated at the bar with the remnants of breakfast in front of her while Uri, he saw, was at the nearby kitchen table reading the paper in a white, fuzzy robe and matching slippers, but thankfully, at least right then, Kenny was nowhere to be found — either still asleep, he thought, or up to some other bullshit somewhere inside Uri’s huge mansion. 

“Good morning, sweetheart.” Kuchel murmured in response to him, smiling warmly as he approached the bar and leaned over it to face her. “Would you like some breakfast? Uri made pancakes.”

“Uh...yeah, okay. But—

“They’re blueberry. Made with fresh fruit from the market.” Uri piped up, smiling too, Levi saw, even though he did not look away from his paper. 

“Okay. Thanks.” Levi continued, swallowing before he bit his lip and looked down at the counter, shifting from one foot to the other because...well, he knew he had to do this, but he still felt a little embarrassed about telling his mother and his uncle that Erwin was going to be at dinner, as he  _ knew  _ that it would lead to fucking questions that he wasn’t sure he wanted to answer yet.

Unfortunately, though, because Kuchel could read him well, she realized that he was hesitating almost instantly and spoke up to pull it out of him. 

“What is it?” She asked, while Levi clenched his jaw and then sighed. 

No fucking point in holding it back anyway, he thought.

“It’s okay if I invited someone to dinner...right? Uri?”

“Oh, of course! You know you don’t have to ask, Levi.” Uri said then, now glancing Levi’s way with a wide smile and twinkling eyes — almost looking as excited as Kuchel was, he thought, although at least  _ she  _ tried to actually contain it.

“Who is it?” She asked, biting her lip as he often did and giving him a pleased, albeit more restrained, look. 

“It’s just...a guy.”

“A  _ guy? _ ” Kuchel smiled slyly. 

“Yeah.”

“Did you meet someone?

“Fuck, I—

“Is that where you’ve been lately? You’ve been gone so much, I wondered if you’d managed to make a friend.”

“He’s not...really a friend.” Ignoring Uri’s tiny laugh at that, Levi opened his mouth and held it like that for a second, basically gaping like a stupid fish at his mother’s raised brow before he continued. “I mean...we  _ are  _ friends, mom, but, uh—

“Okay. I understand, Levi. It’s complicated. What’s his name?” 

“...Erwin.”

“Erwin?”

“Yeah, Erwin.” Levi replied, suddenly wanting to get out of there very badly, as his mother’s questioning had given him a thought that made him frown. However, before he could, there was still one more thing that he wanted to know,  _ just  _ so he could understand the full extent of the shit he was going to have to deal with later on that night. “So, where’s Kenny? Is he—

“Don’t worry, I’ll make sure he behaves.” Uri interrupted, smirking this time, Levi thought, while he stared at his paper and slowly turned one of the pages. 

He was sitting with his legs crossed, Levi saw, looking perfectly relaxed about the mention of his real uncle even while Levi was not, because although he  _ did  _ appreciate the sentiment, he was not sure that things would actually turn out that way considering that Uri was probably his biggest fucking enabler. Still, his mother nodded and reached over to pat his hand reassuringly, and because there was nothing else he could do regardless, he just mumbled a ‘thanks’ and then left the room, running a hand through his hair and ending up outside on the back porch while the rain poured down in front of him. 

Feeling troubled all of a sudden, he watched it for a bit and just thought, sighing, eventually, before he reached into his pocket so that he could check his cell phone. There, he immediately saw a text from Erwin —  _ ‘Good morning, Levi, I can’t wait to see you later.’   _ — that  _ did  _ cause his lips to curve up into a tiny smile, but for a few moments, for once, he wasn’t exactly sure how he should respond.

_ It’s complicated,  _ he kept hearing; his mother’s voice from earlier echoing around in his head because...well, she  _ was  _ fucking right, but not for the reasons that one might expect. No, it wasn’t that they were playing games or that he couldn’t decide whether he wanted Erwin in that way or not, because on the contrary, he really, really liked Erwin and felt very strongly for him even if they had only met last week, and he could tell that — despite what he had thought at first — this had the potential to become something serious. 

Were they  _ dating _ , though? Levi hadn’t known what to tell his mother and that was what had gotten him thinking about all of this, but he supposed that technically they were. They’d been on dates and planned to go on more, hadn’t they? Yes, he knew, because he’d asked about it last night and that was what dating was, but what happened after that? What happened if Erwin wanted Levi to be his boyfriend? Did Levi  _ want  _ to be  _ Erwin’s  _ boyfriend? Instantly, he felt his heart twinge at that thought and knew that he would like it, but...fuck, that was why there was actually a problem, right?

What exactly was he supposed to do, he wondered, if he fell in love with this guy and then he had to leave? 

It was possible, he knew, because he would not be there forever, and was, of course, to head back home at the end of the summer in just over two months. That wasn’t a lot of time in the grand scheme of things, he thought, but despite the fact that the notion of something like this happening had never once crossed his mind up until then, he was not afraid to admit that with the strong way  _ he  _ felt, he could see how it might easily happen. What should he do, though? Could he handle a long distance relationship, and would Erwin even want one? There were just so many questions, he knew, and all of them could end up not mattering in the end anyway. 

Was he getting too far ahead of himself, then? Maybe, but these were things he thought he needed to consider, as he now felt that if he continued on with this there was a very real chance that he might get his heart broken or vice versa. In fact, the only way to prevent  _ that  _ at this point, he thought, was to cancel on Erwin and end things before they fucking slept together and this really, truly got started, but he knew deep down that he didn’t want that. No, as much as he sensed how badly this could really go, as much as his logical side was telling him to put his guard back up because he could get  _ hurt _ , he hated the thought and knew that he couldn’t, as he didn’t want to hurt Erwin either and the last thing that Levi wanted to do was stay away from him. 

Obviously, it wasn’t just because he wanted to have sex with him, although he did suspect that doing so would just make his feelings for Erwin grow that much more. He was a fucking idiot like that apparently, but whatever, even if this did turn out bad, even if it did end with him sad, lonely, and aching because he had to leave the island, he knew that he’d rather take the chance of finding something amazing than letting it go and always wondering  _ what if. _ After all, he thought, this could always turn out to be the best thing that had ever happened to him,  _ right? _

It was possible, but he couldn’t know that. Still, if there was one thing that he had learned on his vacation so far it was that he  _ liked  _ living in the moment more than he did anything else, and so with that decided, he took a deep breath and opened his phone so that he could quickly text Erwin back.

_ me too. _ He said, allowing himself to feel how he almost vibrated in excitement again at the thought.  _ dinner should be at 7. wanna come over a little before that, at like...6:30? _

As usual, Erwin’s reply came fast. _ Sure. :-) _

_ okay. and you can spend the night if you want. i mean, if you can stand to be away from your fucking boat that long, anyway. _

_ I think I can manage. At least just this once.  _

_ good.  _

Failing to hold back a small, private smile, Levi texted Erwin for a few more minutes on the porch before he went back inside, as although he had gotten distracted, he had not forgotten that his Uncle Uri had apparently made blueberry pancakes. After eating some next to his mother — who wanted to ask more questions about Erwin, Levi could tell, but refrained — he spent the rest of the day lounging around, conversing with Erwin, and reading, as there was not much else to do because of the stupid rain. 

Would it let up before Erwin got there, he wondered? He supposed it didn’t matter either way because they wouldn’t be outside and there was a covered walkway that led to the guesthouse, but the constant sound of it on the windows and the distant, rumbling thunder made him sleepy, and he ended up taking an unplanned nap on his bed instead of making sure that everything inside his space was completely spotless. Thankfully, there was not much to straighten up as he kept his room all pretty neat anyway, and so when he woke up, he just fixed his pillows and bedding and decided that it was time for him to take a shower. 

While there, he shaved his face and washed up and rubbed a large handful of his favorite body wash all over himself, as he was determined to  _ not  _ smell like fucking sweat for once while he was in Erwin’s presence. How would he react to that, he wondered? As he had actually planned, he found out sooner rather than later, because Erwin arrived right on time — knocking on the door of the guest house, which was where Levi had instructed him to go — and Levi did not hesitate to pull him inside for an embrace now that  _ those  _ walls were down and he knew that he could do so, grabbing onto his shirt collar even as he all but threw himself into Erwin’s arms for an excitable, open-mouthed kiss.

“Hello there.” Erwin murmured once they managed to part, smiling down at Levi after they had lingered and earnestly made out like that for  _ at least  _ a few minutes. “It’s nice to see you too.”

Snorting, Levi bit his lip and then buried his face against Erwin’s chest, hugging him and enjoying how it felt to just be still in his arms again — he’d been longing for it and another kiss from him  _ all day _ — for a moment before he pulled away. 

“Hey.” He said too, now allowing himself to fully appraise Erwin and his outfit, which was far, far nicer than anything else he’d seen him wearing since they met. Not only was he wearing close-toed shoes, in fact, but he had on pants as well, khaki slacks and a white pressed button down that was rolled up at the sleeves. He looked nice and very handsome, Levi thought, but why the hell was he wearing it? Was he missing something, or what? “Uh...what’s up with your clothes? I mean, you look pretty fucking hot and all, but I don’t remember telling you that you needed to dress up.”

Rubbing at Erwin’s chest as he spoke — to fix the wrinkles he’d made when he’d grabbed his collar, of course — he raised an eyebrow and coyly cocked his head, pausing as Erwin smiled again and let out a small chuckle. 

“You didn’t, but...I’m meeting your family, aren’t I?” He asked, causing Levi to snort loudly even as his heart fluttered. 

“Yeah. I guess. But they’re all just going to be wearing whatever.”

“Well, I just wanted to make sure. I figured this place was nice, the home I mean, and...also, I didn’t know if Uri Reiss was going to be here, so—

“Ohh.” Levi breathed, suddenly giving Erwin a light, playful shove backward as he raised his eyebrows at him. “Is that how it is? You wanna impress my uncle’s sugar daddy now, and not me?”

“No, wait. That’s not what I said.” Erwin laughed, grabbing at Levi to pull him into another hug once he’d recovered from his small push.

“Really? Because it sounds to me like you only dressed up because you thought you were gonna meet Uri. Is that why you agreed to come over so fast?”

“No. I came to see you, Levi.” 

“Hm…” Levi hummed, making a show of looking over Erwin’s face when he leaned closer to press their foreheads together, staring into his blue eyes — only an inch away from his own, and so clear and beautiful that he could never actually be irritated with him even if he truly wanted to — before he wound his arms around Erwin’s neck, pressing a quick peck to his lips as he stepped back and began to pull Erwin along with him. “Prove it, then.”

Biting back a smile and issuing what he  _ hoped  _ was a challenging glance, Levi watched Erwin’s expression just grow that much more excited as he immediately caught on to what he meant, as he surely realized, too, that Levi was now very  _ obviously  _ leading him in the direction of his nearby bed. Because of that, his eyes flashed and he grabbed onto Levi’s waist, allowing himself to be led along without protest until they tumbled down onto the mattress together with their lips already locked, as well as a playful — yet  _ eager  _ — manner to the way that they moved.

Indeed, despite the fact that Erwin smiled into it with obvious delight, he kissed Levi so deeply that he was sure it would have made his legs turn into jelly had he still been standing up, had he not already been lying beneath Erwin who had landed above him and caught himself on both his knees and his elbows. Feeling a heated thrill from the position — Levi was not afraid to admit that Erwin’s size  _ really  _ fucking turned him on, especially in comparison to his own body — he moved his mouth over Erwin’s just as aggressively, knowing that they did not have time for this to go anywhere but enjoying how Erwin seemed to be taking his teasing ‘challenge’ to heart anyway. 

While continuing to kiss him with what felt like everything he had, in fact, Erwin squeezed at Levi’s waist, too, and stroked his hand along his side, rubbing his big, warm palm over what felt like the entire expanse of his belly when Levi squirmed and then arched excitedly into his touch. As he did so, he felt Erwin’s fingers fist into his shirt and he wished that he would just shove the fucking thing up and over his chest and caress his bare skin, but settled for just telling himself that things like that would surely come later, moving, then, to loop an arm around Erwin’s neck instead of anything else so that he could tug him closer. 

Pulling Erwin down so that he was  _ really  _ lying on top of him, he made a low, pleased sounding moan in the back of throat when they readjusted and Erwin’s bulk was now settled partially between his thighs, biting his lip and then closing his eyes as Erwin grabbed onto his hip again and redirected his mouth so that he could kiss and nibble at Levi’s neck. As he did so, he seemed to become a bit distracted with each second that passed, however, pausing between the movements of his mouth until he stopped and then all but shoved his face into the crook of Levi’s throat and very noisily inhaled, causing Levi to have to suppress a pleasurable shiver when his wet lips and warm breath immediately tickled lightly at the sensitive, stimulated skin.

“Levi…” Erwin murmured then, nuzzling him a bit too, even as Levi tilted his head back in an effort to give him more access. “You smell really good.”

“Yeah? You like that?” Levi replied, unable to stop from letting out a huff of laughter at the fun thrill of it all — as well as the realization that his efforts with the bodywash had  _ clearly  _ fucking paid off. 

Enjoying the attention that it had gotten him, he ran his fingers through the hair at the back of Erwin’s head and then palmed at his broad back, sighing in bliss, too, as Erwin gave his neck a few more lazy kisses while he breathed him in again and continued. 

“Yes. I mean...I like the way you smell all the time, but—

“Well, you don’t smell so bad yourself. You... _ fuck. _ ” 

Levi cut himself off when Erwin suddenly sucked at a spot just underneath the end of his jaw — not sharply enough to leave a mark, of course, but enough to make lust lance through his groin like a hot knife — but it  _ was  _ true. Erwin smelled amazing and was wearing some kind of spicy cologne that Levi had become enveloped in from the moment he’d entered the room, strong and intoxicating enough to make him feel almost dizzy as he decided to drag Erwin’s head back up for another  _ real  _ kiss.

As their lips met, as Erwin shifted so that he could more easily reach Levi’s mouth again, Levi wrapped his arms and a leg around him and just held on like that, admittedly feeling a lot more hot and bothered than he had planned on getting when he’d dragged Erwin back onto the bed. It was a shame, he thought, that they would have to wait a few more hours for the main event when he already wanted it so badly right then — something that was actually pretty extraordinary, as neither one of them had really touched each other anywhere below the belt just yet. 

No, despite the fact that it was very clear what they were going to do later, Erwin had barely done anything other then lightly brush his fingers over Levi’s ass the other night, a very light touch that he was pretty sure didn’t even count. Why, though? What were they being so careful for? Suddenly feeling a bit mischievous and wanting to up the ante, per se, Levi, with his lust-addled mind, could not resist shifting a little so that he could plant his palm down over Erwin’s belt, rubbing his thumb over it teasingly for a few moments before he then reached in between his legs and  _ grabbed  _ at his cock and balls.

Immediately, when he did so, when he wrapped his fingers around Erwin’s bulge without warning, he stiffened and pulled back to look at Levi with slightly widened eyes, a noticeably surprised expression evident on his face while Levi just struggled to bite back a smile. It was hard not to, he thought, because of Erwin’s reaction — he clearly had not been expecting Levi’s playfulness to lead to that, at least not right then — but also because...well,  _ holy shit _ , Erwin was hard, hot, and heavy in his palm, and just... _ big _ , Levi thought, in a way that made his mouth fucking start to water. In addition to that, of course, he felt a thrill too, a thrill which did not go away when he lightly rubbed at Erwin through his pants and he saw how it made his eyes flutter.

He exhaled quite noisily as well, Levi noticed, but the sound almost immediately turned into a deep groan when Levi suddenly tightened his grip just a bit and  _ squeezed.  _ Obviously, he did not do so hard enough to hurt him, but it was apparently enough for Erwin’s head to fall down onto Levi’s shoulder, for his hips to twitch up towards his fingers as if he was trying to seek out more stimulation. It was probably an automatic reaction more than anything else, Levi thought, but even so, he would have been crazy to not indulge him and do it again — especially when his overall reaction to this had been so fucking hot. 

“Levi.” Erwin breathed a second later, though, sounding more strained than he had so far even as he huffed out a bit of laughter. “What are you trying to do?”

Pausing at that, Levi bit his lip and assumed that Erwin was asking because it was probably getting close to the time that they would need to leave to go eat dinner in the main house. Sure enough, before Levi could even answer him his fucking phone started ringing in his pocket, vibrating noisily, too, and causing Levi to make a face because he knew that he would now have to pull away. 

“Relax.” He murmured first, though, tugging Erwin’s head closer again so that he could give him another kiss, nipping at his bottom lip, too, before he gave his erection one more quick squeeze and then finally let go. “I was just trying to see what I’m in store for later.”

Before Erwin could respond, Levi had pulled his phone out of his pocket and squirmed out from under him, moving to sit up along the edge of the bed so that he could answer it and talk to his mother. That was who was calling, of course, because she wanted to tell Levi that dinner would be ready soon and to ask if his ‘friend’ was there yet, which was a question that nearly made him snort because of how completely obvious Erwin’s presence had been to him for the past 15 or so minutes. 

“Yeah.” He just replied with though, looking at where Erwin had sat up beside him and was now trying to straighten his hair and smooth down any wrinkles on his button-up shirt, wearing a flirtatious smile as he did so that immediately translated into him wrapping an arm around Levi’s waist and leaning closer to kiss his cheek as soon as he had hung up the phone. 

“That wasn’t fair.” He murmured, keeping his forehead pressed up against Levi’s temple. 

“Fair?” Levi replied, feigning ignorance even though he was quite fucking sure he knew  _ exactly  _ what Erwin was talking about. “What the hell do you mean?”

“I mean, shouldn’t I have the same courtesy? About knowing what I’m in store for later too?” 

Snorting, Levi leaned into Erwin when he nuzzled him and purposefully placed a very heavy hand high up on his leg, squeezing his thigh once while Levi glimpsed his teasing smile from the corner of his eye. Although he knew Erwin was just messing with him, he really did want nothing more than for Erwin to touch his dick or whatever else he wanted to do too, but unfortunately, by then, he knew that doing so for even only one moment would make it that much more frustrating when he had to pull away. 

“You’ll get it all you want later.” He just replied with that thought, deciding that he’d much rather tease Erwin back instead of allowing the opposite to happen to him. Reaching over to give his covered cock one more brief pat, he turned his head to plant a quick peck on Erwin’s lips before standing up, grabbing onto his arm to pull him along too and trying not to laugh at the pouty expression on Erwin’s face as he did so. “Come on.”


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Hey kid.” The man said, while Erwin stopped directly behind Levi and stared. He knew it was rude to do so, he thought, but he couldn’t help it, as whoever this guy was...well, he was clearly drunk. He was swaying in place, in fact, and held a half empty bottle of beer in both of his hands, dressed in nothing but swim trunks and a cowboy hat set above an older, wrinkly face that was partially covered in a scraggly beard. “Who's...who the fuck’s that?”
> 
> “Where’s Uri?” Levi replied with automatically, almost glaring at the newcomer — who Erwin now suspected was Levi’s true uncle — while Erwin debated on whether or not he should introduce himself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> everyone pray for erwin who is about to meet kenuri

Levi, Erwin thought, was determined to kill him before he would have the chance to actually take him to bed. His cause of death? Blue balls, because Levi’s small, wandering hands and eager mouth had gotten him nearly painfully hard in what felt like seconds once he arrived, and then conversely, left him aching and needy on the bed almost just as quickly with no real relief in sight — at least for just a few hours.  

Did Levi  _ know  _ the effect he had on him, Erwin wondered? He doubted it, as he was only just starting to understand how strong it was himself because this was still very new, but even  _ if  _ he was unsure of how he was going to make it through dinner he didn’t actually have any complaints. No, he thought, he  _ liked  _ it, all of it. He liked how Levi teased him — it was exciting — and he liked how undaunted he was — it was  _ refreshing  _ — and he especially liked how Levi had shamelessly grabbed his cock without hesitation, as this brazen, confident attitude he exhibited about getting what he wanted in the bedroom was incredibly arousing, and despite everything else, had ended up turning Erwin on more than anything.

He was currently struggling, in fact, to forget about how Levi had groped him with a mischievous, challenging sort of look in his eye, as they had exited the guest house and were now making their way towards the main one, holding hands as Erwin told himself that he now needed to focus on interacting with Levi’s family instead of with Levi’s body. Still, he could not help but think that the thick, hot, humid air and the steam coming off the ground from the rain was some kind of metaphor for how he felt right then, and hoped as Levi led him by the hand that, when he was introduced to his mother, he didn’t look like he was thinking about roughly fucking her son into a mattress. 

Thankfully, though — or not, he really, really wasn’t sure — he met someone else first, someone who was not Uri Reiss or Ms. Ackerman, and who made Levi swear and stop in place as soon as they entered the house and were accosted by a tall, lanky man rounding the corner. 

“Hey kid.” He said, while Erwin stopped directly behind Levi and  _ stared _ . He knew it was rude to do so, he thought, but he couldn’t help it, as whoever this man was...well, he was clearly drunk. He was swaying in place, in fact, and held a half empty bottle of beer in  _ both  _ of his hands, dressed in nothing but swim trunks and a cowboy hat set above an older, wrinkly face that was partially covered in a scraggly beard. “Who's...who the fuck’s that?”

“Where’s Uri?” Levi replied with automatically, almost glaring at the newcomer — who Erwin now suspected was Levi’s true uncle — while Erwin debated on whether or not he should introduce himself. 

Surely, Levi had not forgotten that he needed to do so, right? Erwin didn’t know, but what he was sure of was that he wanted to make a good impression — he hadn’t been lying when he’d told Levi that he’d dressed up on purpose before coming there, as something had told him that meeting Levi’s family was  _ not  _ anything he wanted to mess up when Levi was rapidly becoming so important to him — and that failing to introduce himself would not come across as anything other than rude.

“Fuck, Levi, I dunno. Kitchen, I guess? You didn’t answer my...my question. Who is that?” The man said before he could, though, slurring and animatedly waving around one of the beer bottles as he spoke while Levi let out a loud sigh in front of him. 

“Fuck your shitty questions, you drunk piece of—

“I’m Erwin.” Erwin interrupted, giving the man a friendly smile as he stepped around Levi and held out a hand. “I’m Levi’s...ah, well—

“He’s my guest. For dinner.” Levi blurted, saving Erwin from the internal struggle he’d begun to have when he realized he didn’t know what to call him. 

“Your guest, huh?” The man said, ignoring Erwin’s hand completely and raising his eyebrows. “What kind of guest? You just friends with him, or—

“Kenny!” Another voice sounded out this time, a higher-pitched, tinier one that belonged to an equally tiny man who suddenly appeared around the corner. 

Like Kenny — Levi’s uncle, Erwin now knew for sure — he was dressed oddly for dinner, wearing white, fuzzy slippers and matching silk pajamas with his pale blonde hair pulled up into a ponytail. He had a round, wise looking face and appeared to be older as well, and because of the way that he, disturbingly enough, walked up and pinched Kenny’s ass in an apparent attempt to chastise him so he would be quiet...well, Erwin could only assume that he was Uri Reiss.

Freezing, then, to stare — Uri was something of a local celebrity, an almost fabled man who only existed in stories and gossip, and Erwin could not lie and say that he hadn’t been a bit curious to meet him despite Levi’s teasing — Erwin watched as Kenny swore and swatted at him and even spilled a little of his beer, opening his mouth to respond but ending up being interrupted by Levi’s mother, who rounded the corner next and addressed them all with a wide, excited smile on her very Levi looking face. 

“Is this Erwin?” She asked, practically beaming at them both while Levi sighed in irritation as loudly as he could, stepping backward from where he still stood in front of Erwin and actually holding one of his arms out, looking everything, Erwin thought, like he was attempting to guard him from the small army of people who had accosted them before they’d barely even made it through the door. 

“God dammit, mom.” He said too. “Can’t we just get to the fucking kitchen first? Christ, we just walked in and fucking Kenny—

“I’m sorry. He’s very drunk.” Uri said, laughing a bit as if he just found it delightful while Kenny scowled and rolled his eyes beside him.

“Ah...it’s alright.” Erwin replied, honestly feeling unsure of what to do at Kenny’s obstinance.

Had he already done something wrong, or was he just like this with everyone? Because of the things that Levi had told him — as well as the fact that he hadn’t exactly been friendly to Levi either — Erwin suspected it was the latter, but still, he made sure to keep a smile plastered over his face in response. 

“I’m Uri Reiss. It’s a pleasure.” Uri continued then, reaching up to offer Erwin his small hand for a quick shake. 

He craned his neck back to look up at him, Erwin saw, and noticed as he stepped forward that he was even smaller than Levi was. He was also a lot thinner and looked to be in his late 60’s or early 70’s, as opposed to Kenny, who could have been at least 10 or more years younger. Swallowing, Erwin tried very, very hard to keep Levi’s voice from repeating ‘My Uncle’s Sugar Daddy,’ over and over again in his mind as he shook Uri’s hand, instead focusing on how he honestly felt a bit awed at actually meeting the man who he’d heard so many stories about. 

At the beginning of the summer, he would have never in a million years imagined that he’d be in his house much less dating his nephew, and he supposed that it was only just now really hitting him that it’s what he was actually doing. In fact, standing there, while looking around the house — which was not necessarily opulent, he thought, but clearly nice and very huge — he felt a bit out of place, as he was just a working class type of guy who lived on a houseboat while making money from odd jobs and usually living paycheck to paycheck, as it were. 

Still, Uri seemed kind and Levi was, of course, standing right there beside him, his mere presence thankfully being enough to help reassure him. After all, he thought, Levi had never come across as anything other than down to earth either, not much different from Erwin when it came to how he actually lived when he wasn’t one the island. 

“I’m Erwin. Erwin Smith.” He responded with that in mind, reaching up to place a palm on Levi’s shoulder — honestly without even thinking about it, as if he was unconsciously seeking out what he knew would help quell the small influx of nerves he’d just felt — while he used his other to shake Uri’s hand.

“Welcome, Erwin.” Uri replied, clapping him on the arm warmly while Levi sighed a bit and then cleared his throat beside him. 

“Uh...Erwin.” He said too, biting his lip and now sporting slightly reddened cheeks as he gestured towards his mother. Was this making him nervous too? “This is my mom.”

“Hi, I’m Kuchel. It’s nice to meet you, Erwin.” She said after Levi’s introduction, after Erwin had turned toward her politely and watched her give him a small wave. 

Smiling again when Kuchel gave him a warm glance, too, Erwin shook her hand and was able to get a closer look, noting, just as he briefly had earlier, how much Levi actually resembled her — although she was admittedly a lot more smiley and upbeat on first glance.

“Come into the kitchen.” She told him before Erwin could do anything other than nod in response, throwing Levi a wink and ushering them both further in, even as Levi grabbed onto Erwin’s arm and practically hauled him away from Kenny and Uri as fast as he could. 

Suspecting that he was actually trying to leave Kenny behind more than Uri, it did not much matter either way when they just followed behind them, when they were soon all seated around a large glass table inside a very spacious kitchen — one with a high roof and many floor to ceiling windows, some of which were open to let the tropical sounds and air from outside come in through the thin curtains. Although Erwin had actually seen very little of the house, he thought, the entire place thus far gave off a very casual, clean, airy aura, certainly giving him the impression that it was meant to be a vacation home built only for relaxation. 

Still, he could see a more formal dining room around the corner, but the kitchen was clearly more obviously used and Erwin had no interest in wandering anyplace else, especially because something now smelled delicious and there were pans of food set up all along an island. 

“We’re having roast pork.” Levi told him once they sat down and he scooted his chair closer to Erwin, taking two beers from Uri and passing one to him as he just continued to crane his neck towards the food. 

“It smells good.” He replied, cracking open his drink while Levi sneakily kissed his cheek after making sure no one was looking. 

“Yeah.” He said, frowning a bit. “You wanna leave yet?”

“No. Why would I want to leave?”

Although Levi opened his mouth to respond, Kenny chose that moment to plop down in a seat across the table from him, taking a large swig of the beer he had and immediately fixing a surly glare in their direction. At that, Levi raised an eyebrow and jerked his head at his uncle — clearly indicating that he was the reason Erwin might want to leave — as Erwin let out a chuckle and shook his head. 

“I’m alright.” He said, smiling wider and leaning closer toward Levi so he could murmur quietly: “But I see where you get your attitude from.”

Obviously, he was teasing, and obviously, the scowl, the scoff, and the playful smack on the chest that Levi gave him in response was not serious either, and only served to make Erwin laugh louder until the food began to be passed out and he was handed a heaping plate of salad, slaw, roasted pork, and steamed broccoli by Uri, who seemed happy to distribute it all himself until everyone was seated around the table finally eating dinner. 

At that point, Erwin became the recipient of many questions from both Kuchel and Uri, the former mostly asking him about himself and what his job was while the latter wanted to know every little detail about his life on the island, apparently finding the fact that he lived on a houseboat to be so completely fascinating that his queries about the subject lasted at least 10 whole minutes. Levi’s  _ other  _ uncle though, was, of course, not as impressed.

“So lemme get this fuckin’ straight.” He slurred, from behind a small mass of slowly accumulating beer bottles. “You live on a boat, like...a shitty fishing boat?”

“It’s not shitty.” Levi piped up, giving Kenny what could only be described as a murderous look from across the table — an act that made Erwin’s heart flutter a bit, he couldn’t lie, because it was obvious that Levi was defending him even if he wasn’t a huge fan of the boat thing either. 

“Whatever you say, kid. I just wanna know where he takes a shit. Like, does he have to go use an outhouse, because that seems like a pain in the ass, or—

Although Kenny flinched then as if either Uri or Kuchel had kicked him under the table, Erwin just chuckled a bit at the question, shrugging, too, because to him, the answer was obvious: “On the boat. I have a bathroom.”

“What? How?!” 

“Oh, I bet it’s very small.” Uri said then, smiling widely. “That sounds so charming.”

Erwin nodded, because yes, it  _ was  _ true. His bathroom was tiny. 

“I just don’t get it, I guess. What the hell do you do there, when you’re not workin’? Sit around?” Kenny continued, squinting at Erwin as Levi sighed beside him. 

“Just ignore his stupid fucking questions.” He muttered, while Erwin blinked. “He sits around all day and drinks himself, so I don’t even know why he’s asking you that. He hasn’t changed his nasty swim trunks once since we got here.”

“What? Shrimp, that’s bullshit, and—

Interrupting with a laugh, Erwin glanced at Levi and then at Kenny before answering. “Ah...well, I do the same thing you do when I’m not working, really. I drink beer, and relax. Except I  _ do  _ make sure to change my pants sometimes.”

Obviously, his comment was nothing more than a joke, but for a moment, Kenny fixed him with the nastiest look he’d given him so far while Uri chuckled, and he wondered if he’d just made a mistake. Then, though, then, surprisingly enough, Kenny’s expression changed, and he let out a loud bark of laughter while slapping his hand down on the table. Beside him, Kuchel beamed too, Erwin saw, although she wasn’t looking at him, but at Levi, who Erwin noticed wore a tiny smile of his own as he stared down at his food when he turned to look at him. 

Swallowing, Erwin fought the urge to reach down and grab his free hand — the table was glass, and he wasn’t sure if Levi would appreciate that in front of everyone — and instead just more subtly pressed his foot up against Levi’s own beneath it as the conversation continued. After that, Kuchel wanted to know all about how they’d met and if they’d done anything fun together, telling Erwin that _ ‘Levi’s barely been around lately, but he didn’t mention you until this morning,’  _ before he casually brought up the fishing, only saying a little though and otherwise letting Levi answer  _ that  _ question himself. 

He didn’t know how much he wanted to share, obviously, about the dates they’d gone on and whatnot, and unsurprisingly, Levi just shrugged it off and vaguely said that they’d been ‘hanging out.’ It wasn’t untrue, Erwin thought, and it didn’t matter anyway, because Uri then became very interested in their fishing trip and what they’d caught, and practically begged them to bring home some fresh fish next time if they went again so that they could cook it. Knowing that Levi had enjoyed eating seafood too, Erwin happily said that he would — especially since it might mean another fishing excursion for him and Levi — before the conversation again shifted and he got up to go get seconds. 

Afterward, the rest of their dinner progressed like that until they’d finished dessert and had coffee and tea and Levi clearly became antsy to leave the table. It wasn’t that he was ready to drag Erwin back to the guest house so they could immediately finish what they’d started earlier, Erwin sensed, but that he just wanted to be out of his family’s presence because he’d tired of the scrutiny, enough so that he all but pulled Erwin off by the arm again once they’d cleaned their plates and led him back onto the outside patio. 

There, he didn’t stop walking as Erwin had expected, and instead kept going, taking his hand properly and linking their fingers together while Erwin blinked in confusion as they headed in the opposite direction of the guest house. 

“Levi?” He asked, while they rounded the pool — the most amazing one Erwin had ever seen, he thought, with a fountain and tropical trees and plants surrounding it which made it look like some kind of desert oasis — and then walked off the concrete path and onto the neatly cut grass.

“I wanna show you something.” Levi replied, sparing Erwin a quick glance over his shoulder without stopping. “Come on. Hurry.”

“Alright.”

Raising an eyebrow as he spoke, Erwin said nothing else even though he was now immensely curious, wondering, he thought, what Levi wanted to show him and why they needed to rush for him to do so. His questions only increased when they continued walking across Uri’s vast grounds until they reached a wooden fence with a gate — one that Levi opened and that allowed them to move to where the forest started, where a small, dirt path that led into it became visible and made Erwin realize they were apparently about to go hiking.

Although he was not exactly dressed for tramping through wet, tropical woods, he did anyway, keeping his hand in Levi’s and finding himself mildly fascinated with all the sights and sounds he sensed while heading down the trail. It was thin, he thought, but relatively straight, warm and misty from the recent rain until — after they’d walked for at least five more minutes — Erwin finally glimpsed something over Levi’s head that wasn’t just leafy and green. 

Instead, he saw an opening and then a bluish pink color, and right away he knew what it was: the sky. Sure enough, another 30 seconds of walking and they were suddenly stepping out of the forest and into a clearing on the edge of a cliff — one set on the same mountain ridge that Uri lived on and that overlooked the ocean and the entire town laid out below them. In fact, he could easily see the marina where he lived from there, Erwin thought, as well as the beach where he worked, along with the setting sun which he now realized was the reason that Levi had likely been in such a hurry. 

“Levi.” Erwin said then, because Levi was now looking up at him expectantly from where he’d stopped beside him. “This is amazing.”

It was, he thought. He wasn’t lying. No, the view was truly incredible and the sunset over the ocean was a beautiful sight to behold, casting the sky in different shades of colors that reflected off of the water. It was romantic, really, if he was being honest, and with his heart suddenly swelling with warmth, happiness, and something fond for Levi, he turned to smile at him, bending to give him a quick kiss before Levi bit his lip and finally returned the expression. 

Sitting down together, they let their legs dangle over the edges of the rock, leaning against each other after Erwin put an arm around Levi so that they could watch the sun go down in peaceful silence. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thanks to everyone who continues to read this. comments and kudos are always appreciated <3


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Well,” Erwin started, smiling after a second or two had passed right before he ducked down to press his mouth against Levi’s neck. “What do you want from me, Levi?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I HOPE THIS IS OK

Eventually, once it was dark, they returned to the guest house hand in hand, laughing after a surprisingly precarious journey through the thick, now pitch black forest that they’d gone through to get to the cliffs. It was hard to see even with their phones and the trail wasn’t exactly kept up well, and Levi had almost tripped twice — Erwin, too, had actually hit his head on a low hanging tree branch and got leaves caught in his hair that Levi had to pick out — but the trek did nothing to stimmy the excitement that had erupted anew inside Levi’s stomach. 

No, that was now even stronger than it had been before, partly because it was obviously time for them to head to bed and partly because…well, the shit with the sunset had been pretty fucking romantic for something that Levi had thought of on the fly, and now the want for Erwin, the almost blinding desire to just be close to him, had him hurrying across Uri’s lawn with Erwin in tow. Of course, Erwin clearly felt it too, so much so that  _ he _ apparently could not resist giving into the urgency and grabbed Levi before they could even make it inside, wrapping him up in his big arms so that he could give him a kiss as soon as they stepped onto the guest house porch. 

Although it was sudden, the almost giddy mood between them had them both smiling into it even as Levi’s back hit the door, even as he fumbled for the handle behind him so that he could let them both in, too. Thankfully, it was dark and the entranceway didn’t  _ directly _ face the main house so it was unlikely that they could be seen, but still, he needed inside, needed privacy so that he could do  _ more _ than kiss Erwin — something that he didn’t necessarily want to stop doing either, though, which led to them both stumbling inside in an effort to keep their lips pressed together once Levi opened the door. 

Because of that, they didn’t make it far, and Levi just ended up with his back pressed against that side of the wood too, practically flinging his arms around Erwin’s neck now that they were free so that he could throw himself into the embrace as much as he possibly could. Like that, they kissed just as eagerly as they had the first time Erwin had stepped into the guest house, Levi thought, although now, armed with the knowledge that they wouldn’t have to stop, the movements of their mouths were much more purposeful and heated, and they did not hold back when it came to letting their hands wander despite the restraint that they’d used before.  

No, Erwin, especially, who had touched Levi so carefully and in an almost tentative way prior to this, did not hesitate to grab at Levi’s waist, his sides, and his hips now, sliding a palm up underneath the back of his shirt so that he could caress the bare skin in between his shoulder blades too. Naturally, the warm touch made Levi arch and feel a surge of lust, although before he could do anything about it, Erwin had suddenly pulled away long enough to duck down a bit, bending his knees so that he could grab at Levi’s thighs and hoist him into the air — effectively picking him up because he apparently wanted to carry him the four or five steps that it took to get to the nearby bed. 

Feeling amused but also  _ immensely  _ fucking turned on, Levi wrapped his legs as tightly as he could around Erwin’s waist and held on with his arms, kissing him again and licking into his warm, wet mouth hungrily until they found themselves both on the mattress in the same position that they’d been before. Lying on his back, Levi gazed up at Erwin who had, this time, not wasted the chance to settle on top of him and pin Levi down with his weight, and saw him breathing heavy and looking flushed already while he paused for a moment to take in  _ his  _ expression too. 

“Well,” He started, smiling after a second or two had passed right before he ducked down to press his mouth against Levi’s neck. “What do you want from me, Levi?”

Although there were many possibilities that sprung up in Levi’s mind at Erwin’s question, there was only one that he already knew for sure that he wanted — especially after he’d had time to reflect after he’d so eagerly grabbed at Erwin’s dick earlier. 

“Inside.” He gasped because of that, finding that he wasn’t exactly feeling good with words at that point and instead just took Erwin’s hand, guiding his fingers in between his legs and up against his ass just in case he didn’t get the picture. 

Thankfully he did, Levi thought, and reacted immediately to his request in a way that indicated he was  _ clearly _ fine with the idea as well, because after he again lifted his head to look at Levi for a moment like he was checking to see if he was sure, he closed his eyes and let out a sound of pure need, a groan, basically, that was muffled against Levi’s neck when his mouth returned there and that caused him to swear, squirming roughly a second later in an attempt to crawl his way up the bed so that their legs weren’t hanging off and they could rest among the pillows.

Practically dragging Erwin with him, Levi suddenly felt so hot all over that he couldn’t stand it, hard and wanting and burning up on the inside, so much so that he was almost painfully of the opinion that was now wearing far too many fucking clothes. With that in mind, with the thought that he’d waited long enough to see Erwin naked, he pulled his own shirt off and reached up to jerk Erwin’s long sleeved one out of his pants, hastily attempting to undo the buttons with his fingers but ending up nearly thwarted because Erwin was no help at all — not when he seemed to become instantly distracted with Levi’s bare torso, anyway, first rubbing his hands over his chest before he dragged a thumb over a nipple, next bending to abruptly fit his mouth over the other one while Levi again swore and let his head fall back against the bed. 

“Wait.” He gasped though, as his eyes fluttered for a moment and he bit his lip. Squirming, again, when Erwin sucked at the sensitive nub and then every so lightly pinched it with his teeth, Levi barely restrained a moan and again tugged at Erwin’s shirt, forcing him to pull away for a moment so that he could get rid of the thing over his blonde head. “Get this shit off first, you fucker. Come on _.” _

Reaching for Erwin’s belt now, Levi felt a jolt of anticipation go through him when Erwin went for his pants and did the same, working with a determined expression on his handsome, reddened face that had Levi’s mouth suddenly going dry from intense arousal — a sensation that did not go away when they were both  _ finally  _ undressed a few moments later and Levi’s eyes landed on Erwin’s full figure in front of him. 

He’d ended up on his knees, Levi thought, so it wasn’t hard to see most of his body, and although he’d glimpsed him without a shirt on many times already, it didn’t make the sight of his bare chest along with everything else any less breathtaking, so much so that he barely realized how Erwin was staring in the same way down at him, too. Instead of that, Levi just curled his fingers into the sheets while he eyed Erwin's broad shoulders and trim waist, taking in his abs, his hipbones, his thick, strong looking thighs that were covered in blonde hair, and of course, the matching trail that ran south from his navel — the one that Levi had seen before, as he’d said, but that he could now  _ finally _ follow downward to where it actually ended. 

Needless to say, Levi thought, he was not disappointed, but even though he’d already felt Erwin’s cock in his hand earlier nothing could have prepared him for actually seeing it for the first time right in fucking front of him. No, instead of anything else, he was just suddenly aware of how he could  _ hear _ his heart beating in his ears and the way that his hands now fisted into the bedding, because...well, fuck, wow, to say that Erwin was  _ big _ was probably a goddamn understatement. In fact, he was huge as shit, really, to that point that Levi was almost just baffled by the fact that he hadn’t noticed any sign of it before. How the hell did Erwin keep that fucking thing hidden, he wondered? 

Levi didn’t know, but it didn’t matter, either, not when he felt so much excitement and lust just looking at it, at the thick shaft and the plump, pink head glistening with pre-come, that he  _ swore  _ his mouth watered, enough so that he found himself reaching out to physically stop Erwin when he moved to lie down on him again, grabbing at his hips so that he could sit up and lean forward himself to immediately start sucking on his cock. 

Surprised — Levi had moved rather fast, he had to admit — Erwin’s breath hitched and he grabbed onto his hair tightly, loosening his grip after a moment even though it had certainly not caused Levi to stop. No, once he'd taken a few seconds to suckle on the head, moving his mouth over the tip gently before he lapped at the underside, he did not hesitate to take Erwin in a few inches down, letting out a quiet groan that was as much a response to the noise Erwin made as it was an expression of his own pleasure, because despite the fact that Levi was not being touched anywhere, he still found every aspect of this to be enjoyable.

The taste, Erwin’s strong smell, how his cock felt in his mouth; all of it was amazing to him, was enough to make him pant through his nose and ache deep inside with need, finding himself bobbing up and down excitedly and hoping that Erwin was having as fun of a time as he was just trying to make him feel good. With the way that he moaned Levi suspected he was, which, of course, made him redouble his efforts, reaching around to grab and grope at Erwin’s ass with both hands while he hollowed out his cheeks and tried to take him in even further. 

His size made it difficult, of course, but if Levi was being honest, he  _ really  _ wanted to see how much of Erwin’s cock he could fit down his throat before this was over with, knowing he wasn’t that practiced with such things but feeling determined to try any way, even if his eyes were already watering and he struggled to suppress his gag reflex whenever the head so much as slipped past the back of his mouth. Still, despite the fact that he’d never deepthroated a guy  _ this  _ large before, he managed to get perhaps three quarters of the way down before it was too much and Erwin sensed it and pushed Levi off — either that, Levi thought, or he was about to come, which he didn’t think he could make himself stop even though he knew he’d rather Erwin come somewhere else — swallowing his gasp when his back hit the bed again as he immediately climbed back over him and pressed their lips together.

For a moment, Levi felt dizzy but melted into it anyway, wrapping his arms around Erwin’s neck and throwing a thigh over his waist eagerly, using so much force on accident that it caused Erwin to lose his balance a bit and fall down onto an elbow. Feeling playful and still beyond exhilarated, of course, Levi took advantage without a second’s hesitation and shoved Erwin off and onto his back, rolling over himself so that he could climb on top, grab his jaw, and kiss Erwin with an admittedly smug smile on his face that he couldn’t control. Naturally, Erwin matched it — while the sound of low, muffled laughter rumbled through his chest — but made no move whatsoever to do anything about the change in position. 

Instead, he laid back and reached around to grab Levi’s ass, still  _ grinning _ , basically, while they made out, as if he was quite pleased to have the opportunity to stay still for a long moment or two so that he could taking his timing groping Levi’s backside and thighs. Of course, that just had the effect of making Levi feel more and more riled up, as Erwin’s large hands, squeezing him and spreading his cheeks and even slipping a finger or two in between to brush over his entrance, were incredibly distracting, their presence on his ass exciting him to the point that he started to roll his hips a few times in an attempt to rut his cock up against Erwin’s stomach. 

He was leaning over and still kissing him but it wasn’t very effective, and because of that, he suddenly whined, pulling away from Erwin’s mouth to nip and bite at his jaw, neck, and throat. At that point, Erwin took the initiative to grab his wrists and roll him back over again, shoving a knee in between his legs while he pressed their lips together a few more times before suddenly, he stopped and glanced up to catch Levi’s eye. 

“God, Levi, you’re amazing.” He breathed then, as Levi, who had been nearly desperately squirming underneath him, went still for a moment too, parting his lips in a bit of surprise and awe because of the absolute sincerity that he’d just heard in Erwin’s voice. The way he was gazing down at him too, he thought, was soft and fond and it made his chest swell with warmth, a fluttery, almost awed feeling going through him, too, as he tightened his grip over where he now held onto Erwin’s shoulders. “I want you, so much. All of you. Not just this, but everything.”

Although it was a relatively simple statement, the way Erwin said it with such conviction made Levi have to swallow down a lump along with everything else, as he knew what Erwin was trying to tell him: that he wasn’t just in this because he wanted to sleep with him, but because he wanted to be involved in every part of Levi’s life too, because he wanted, as he’d said, all of him and not just his body. Needless to say, despite the fact that Levi hadn’t thought that Erwin had only been interested in having sex with him because of how he’d treated him so far — if that was the case, he was pretty sure they would have fucked a long time ago and Erwin would already be gone — hearing him say so still made him feel incredible, as he was quite sure that he’d never been in the arms of such an amazing fucking guy before. 

“Erwin…” He uttered then, opening his mouth and closing it again while he stared at Erwin’s bright blue eyes and soft expression, trying to figure out what to say to express to him exactly what he was feeling. Of course, that had never been easy for him even when he was calm, and right now he was far from it, honestly overwhelmed with emotion and thoughts of how much he liked Erwin as well as his lust, which had not gone away and had honestly only grown stronger in the wake of Erwin’s confession. “Me too. I mean, I want all of you too, like you said. Fuck, you make me feel really good, and…”

At that point, Levi trailed off, unable to find anymore words to express himself without sounding like a fucking idiot. How was he supposed to explain to Erwin how special he made him feel and what it meant to him, what he meant to him already, in a way that made sense? He didn’t know and his mind was a whirlwind, and so instead of speaking, he did what he  _ knew  _ he could, and grabbed Erwin’s cheeks so that he could press their lips together in another hard, heated, and  _ hungry  _ kiss. Thankfully, Erwin seemed to get it, because he was already smiling widely before Levi had jerked his face forward, and he melted into it right away, closing his eyes when Levi did the same and throwing everything into the renewed embrace, essentially moving his mouth over Levi’s now as if he wanted to actually devour him. 

Of course, Levi was so eager that he was already squirming again, panting through his nose and in between every feverish kiss, and eventually making another desperate sounding noise in the back of his throat after a few moments because  _ fuck, _ all of this just made him want Erwin more, made him  _ need  _ to be close to him and crave the intimacy that was about to come, so much so that if he didn’t get it soon he was pretty sure his aching dick was just going to fucking explode — a thought that had him shifting abruptly to reach over the edge of the bed for drawer that he  _ knew  _ would hold the lube. 

Fumbling because he was loathe to pull away, he rooted around until he found it while Erwin, who had apparently realized what he was doing, slid off him enough to lie at his side so that he could more easily reach between his legs, rubbing at Levi’s inner thigh with one palm excitedly and brushing his fingers over his cock, too, which just caused Levi to writhe and arch even as he twisted to shove the bottle into Erwin’s busy hands. 

“Come on, shit.” He gasped, spreading his legs in preparation for what he hoped was about to happen. “Fuck me now.” 

Although Levi didn’t, of course,  _ literally  _ mean now because Erwin was way too big for that and he’d rather it be comfortable, Erwin still smiled in amusement at his impatience as he trailed his lips away from his mouth, moving them over his jaw and neck and only pulling back completely when he popped open the bottle to coat his fingers, taking the time to let a bit drip out just over Levi’s straining cock and balls. That way, it ran down between his legs and over his entrance, making him feel wet already despite the fact that, frustratingly enough, Erwin had yet to start touching him there. 

Thankfully, though, he didn’t waste much time before he was rubbing at his rim with his fingers teasingly, causing Levi to shiver — for a reason other than the momentary cold, dripping sensation from the lube — and bite his lip while Erwin kissed at his cheek, jaw, and ear, murmuring quietly into it, too, just as he slipped one digit inside of him smoothly. 

“Talk to me.” He said, nuzzling at him, almost, while Levi’s eyes fluttered shut and he let out a small gasp beside him. “Tell me if it’s too much.”

“It’s not too much.” Levi breathed without skipping a beat, because it certainly wasn’t. 

It was just one finger, he thought, not even enough to stretch him, did Erwin really think that he couldn’t—

“Hah,  _ fuck. _ ” Levi breathed then, finding his thoughts interrupted when Erwin abruptly added a second, making him gasp again while he arched his back off the bed a bit into the touch. 

“Good?” Erwin asked, though, mouthing gently at his cheek while Levi nodded. 

“Good.” He answered, knowing he sounded strained but not caring in the least, because...well, he definitely felt the intrusion of Erwin’s large fingers at that, although it was more satisfying than anything else and still not anywhere close to being too much — not when he was this relaxed, turned on, and wanting, anyway, and not when Erwin went straight for his prostate, teasing at it in a way that immediately made Levi’s toes curl while he let out a loud moan.

Part of it was muffled when Erwin pressed their lips together again, moving his mouth over Levi’s in a slow kiss that he found himself far too distracted to return for long, as obviously, what Erwin was doing to him felt too good, felt too pleasurable for him to do much but hold on while he worked at getting him ready. Like that, it honestly didn’t take very long and Erwin had three fingers buried up to his knuckles inside of him that he slipped in and out pretty fucking quickly, rendering Levi sweaty — although he barely noticed for once, his bangs were stuck to his forehead and a thin sheen of it covered his whole body — and almost trembling with need in just a few minutes. 

“Erwin.” He rasped then, sliding fingers through Erwin’s own damp hair to direct his head towards his mouth for another kiss. By then, he’d mostly gone still with his eyes averted downward, fascinated, apparently, at what he was doing with his hand while Levi shifted, rolled his hips beneath him, and pressed his face against Erwin’s neck, feeling the pleasure spread warm throughout his body until it became...well, not quite enough. Of course, that didn’t mean that it wasn’t amazing, because it was and he knew he could come like that without even trying, but he wanted more, wanted something bigger inside of him, wanted the man lying beside him to just fucking  _ get on with it  _ soon. “ _ Erwin _ .” 

Incapable of saying much other than that, Levi was pleased that Erwin still got the message, giving him one more hurried, wet kiss — the movements of their lips had become uncoordinated and desperate by then — before he removed his fingers and again reached for the lube. While he did so, Levi sat up on an elbow and was able to get a good look at his face, to see how much this was clearly affecting him too, and could not stop palming at himself while he eyed Erwin’s parted, kiss reddened lips and his lidded eyes, the deeply flushed skin of his face and neck and the sheen of sweat over his abdomen, and, of course, his swollen pink cock, still hard and straining and leaking enough to inspire Levi to suddenly grab at Erwin’s shoulders to flip him over.

As he did so, as he eagerly climbed on top of him and recalled how nice it had felt to be in this position earlier, Levi decided that — despite how he’d basically been pleading with Erwin to do this himself seconds before — he’d much rather ride him instead, finding that his belly clenched so tightly with arousal for a moment at the thought that it almost rendered him still. Instead of that, though, he straddled Erwin’s waist and placed his hands on his chest, rubbing at it for a second or two while he stared down at him and watched as Erwin eyed him with interest. He’d been in the process of opening the lube again, of course, when Levi had pushed him onto his back, but relinquished it immediately when Levi leaned over after another moment to grab it from his hand. 

Clearly, Levi thought then, he was more than fine with the change in position, because after Levi linked their fingers together over the bottle before he took it — lowering himself further to give Erwin a kiss first — and sat up again, he shifted eagerly to get more comfortable so that he was reclined upon a stack of pillows, raising his knees behind Levi and reaching out to grip his waist preemptively while he watched him. His eyes were following his every movement, in fact, and appeared quite heated, and the feel of Erwin’s heavy gaze on him caused Levi to bite his lip while he twisted around to apply  _ more _ than enough of the wet liquid they needed to Erwin’s cock.

Pausing to stroke him like that, Levi honestly had to fight back a groan at how it felt to have his now slick length sliding along the inside of his hand, the hot, firm, thickness of it filling him up with enough anticipation so that he could only contain it for a second longer before he let go to hurriedly reposition himself over Erwin’s lap. Next pressing one hand down over his hip, Levi reached back to spread himself too, taking a deep breath while Erwin moved to help him, using his fingers to hold his cock in place so that Levi could gently start easing himself down. As he did so, he felt Erwin rubbing at his thigh almost soothingly with his free hand, obviously, sweetly seeking to try and relax him more, Levi thought, even though Erwin was not even inside of him yet. 

A second later and he was, though, because Levi had sank down enough so that the blunt pressure from the head of Erwin’s length against his entrance suddenly gave, the sensation of him slipping inside even just a few inches causing him to immediately exhale as if the air had been pushed from his lungs.  _ Shit,  _ he thought, _ fuck, _ Erwin felt just as huge as he fucking looked, and even though he’d been worked open pretty good, there was still a moment where he had to let himself adjust to how stretched he suddenly was and focus on relaxing before he continued. Digging his fingers into the skin of Erwin’s hip, Levi struggled through it — not because he was in pain or it was too much, but because he was just so impatient.

He wanted to let go already, he knew, to have every single inch of Erwin stuffed inside him so that he could ride him as wantonly as he could, but thankfully, after that and after Levi starting jerking himself off, it got easier and his muscles grew softer, and he felt more comfortable and relaxed and bold, so much so that he found himself leaning forward to give Erwin a quick, hard kiss before he then nipped at his bottom lip and lowered himself further. Needless to say, Erwin could not seem to resist carefully thrusting upward with his hips then, wearing a sort of dazed expression on his face at that point that might have been amusing if Levi was capable of any coherent thought. 

Because he wasn’t — or at least, because he was too busy trying to breath and concentrate on what he was doing — he just whimpered, the sound turning into a moan while he and Erwin both moved faster, working together until Levi was fully seated in his lap and nearly trembling from the sensation of being completely, overwhelmingly  _ full. _

“Fuck.” He breathed out then, shifting to wipe sweat off his brow before he leaned forward to kiss at Erwin’s neck, planting one on his mouth a bit sloppily again too, and pausing for another second to clench around Erwin’s cock so that he could savor how satisfying it felt to have all of it buried somewhere inside him. 

Swallowing Erwin’s groan, he barely realized he’d echoed the sound as he sat up again, as he planted both palms on Erwin’s chest and braced himself, rolling his hips once experimentally before he  _ finally  _ began to fucking move.


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> To be honest, it was a miracle that Erwin hadn’t come already when Levi had taken it upon himself to start blowing him earlier.

_ Don’t come.  _ Erwin told himself.  _ Don’t come, don’t come, don’t come. _

Truthfully, Erwin thought, he wasn’t actually about to, but it had been a while since he’d done this, and  _ never _ with anyone as intense and attractive as Levi was to him. It was a lot, and Levi had barely even been riding him for more than a minute or two —  _ god, _ even just thinking that Levi was doing that,  _ riding him _ , made Erwin want to explode — but he’d been able to tell from the moment he had directed his cock inside him that it wouldn’t take much for him to get overwhelmed and lose control. 

To be honest, it was a miracle that he hadn’t already when Levi had taken it upon himself to start blowing him earlier, as his mouth had felt amazing, tight and hot and wet and just like what he was experiencing now, except this was much, much better. Still, that wasn’t just it. No, the pleasure was good, of course, but the view made his heart pound and caused his breath to catch in his chest just as much, as Levi was beyond beautiful like this, and the sight of him fucking himself on his cock completely naked was one that he knew he’d be thinking about for many weeks to come. 

His lithe body, covered in sweat, and the muscles shifting underneath his flushed skin and spread thighs while he lifted himself up and down was something he could barely take his eyes off of, as was the slack-jawed expression of bliss on his face that he surely knew matched his own. The sounds he made, too, were like music to his ears —  gorgeous and sweet and surprisingly loud, as delightfully enough, Levi was apparently not afraid to express his pleasure when something he did felt particularly good. 

Erwin had learned that already when he’d fingered him open and ended up with an ache in his balls because of it, and now, although he was certainly getting relief for that, he remained almost mesmerized by what he was seeing and hearing in front of him, forcing himself to keep his eyes open so that he wouldn’t miss a single second of Levi bouncing up and down on his lap. He alternated between that and just sitting on him hard so that he could clench around him and roll his hips, and  _ oh _ , Erwin thought, it was difficult to stay focused when it felt so good, when Levi’s insides were so, so  _ tight _ as he’d said, squeezing his cock and driving him crazy with the friction every time he moved, so much so that he worried if he bucked up to meet him any harder than he already was that he’d lose his head and come in just a matter of seconds. 

Still, he continued to fight it, to only dig his heels into the bed and lift his hips to meet Levi ever so slightly, although that didn’t stop him from responding to the sudden urge he had to sit upright and take Levi into his arms eventually, wrapping them around his waist so that he could crush him to his chest for a few moments and kiss him as forcefully as he could. Swallowing Levi’s cry — apparently the new angle was good for him, because he’d grabbed Erwin’s shoulders and was now clutching at him hard enough to surely leave bruises — he broke apart and then groaned himself at the thought of how deeply he was buried inside Levi now, as in this position and with the way he was holding him, he couldn’t do much but grind down and frot up against his abdomen. 

Because they were pressed flush against each other too, Levi’s cock was now trapped between their bodies and slid easily against the mixture of sweat, pre-come, and lube that had ended up over Erwin’s skin down there, causing  _ him _ to now sound like  _ he  _ was the one in danger of losing control, which, ironically enough, just made Erwin that much more determined to last longer so that he could see him come apart first. Panting in between messy kisses, he pulled away and latched his mouth onto Levi’s neck, sucking and kissing at the skin there eagerly without even sparing the consequences a second thought, unwinding his arms from around his waist, too, so that he could grip and squeeze at his ass and aid him in how he continued to roll his hips. 

Right then, Erwin thought, he wasn’t doing so particularly fast, but as Erwin touched him he arched and increased his pace anyway, throwing his head back and inviting Erwin’s mouth lower and lower until he’d found a nipple, the stimulation of which caused Levi to clench around Erwin so tightly that he moaned again, to slide the fingers of one hand into Erwin’s damp hair and pull so sharply that his blood seemed to boil with a sudden influx of heat, enough so that he then found himself abruptly flipping Levi over and onto his back without even thinking about it so that he could pound into him with abandon. 

He wasn’t sure what came over him, to be quite honest, but the way that Levi moaned his name and went pliant beneath him after throwing his legs around his waist just spurred him on, causing him to thrust with all the energy that he’d held back earlier while Levi — apparently missing the friction on his cock from their previous position — reached in between them to continue jerking off, breathing ragged in Erwin’s ear when he pressed his face into Levi’s neck and mouthed at him sloppily. 

“Fuck, Levi.” He groaned too, realizing, then, that he’d done what he’d been trying not to since the beginning: he’d let go of his control, and did not think that he’d be able to get it back. 

No, it was too late for that, as he could feel the pleasure building so fast that it nearly made his head spin, but it didn’t matter. It was inevitable because...well, because he couldn’t last  _ forever _ , and Levi just felt too perfect, too good and amazing and all he wanted to do now was give in to him — something that Levi was clearly feeling and reaching for too in regards to Erwin, as he was clutching at his neck so tightly with his free arm that it was a wonder he didn’t actually choke. Rather than that, though, Erwin just found himself kissing him on the lips, pressing their foreheads together in between the uncoordinated movements of their mouths while he continued to thrust into Levi fast and hard, the both of them staying like that so that they were both breathing the same air when everything came to a head and they finished together a few minutes later. 

Levi was first and Erwin could only hold out for seconds longer before he had released too, before pleasure shot white hot through him and some guttural sound he couldn’t control had torn itself from his throat to momentarily drown out Levi’s sweet cries, the likes of which turned into groans and whimpers when Erwin continued to lazily thrust for as long as he could until they were both shivering and twitching from the sensitivity. At that point, he felt his cock slip out of the slick, wet heat that was Levi’s ass, and Erwin could not help but sigh and then kiss him again — this time sharing a few slow, light, lingering pecks with Levi before he felt his hands on his face and opened his eyes to meet Levi’s gaze. 

“Erwin.” He murmured, his voice sounding thick and hoarse as he pushed Erwin’s hair back, still breathing heavily, however, and looking like he’d just run some kind of marathon. Seeming to be struggling for words, he stared up at Erwin and caressed his face, opening and closing his mouth for a few seconds before finally blurting out the only thing that he could apparently think of to say:  _ “...fuck.” _

Immediately, Erwin started laughing, because if he was being honest ‘fuck’ summed up much of what he felt too, as he was quite sure that what they’d just done had been one of the most intense experiences of his entire life. In addition, he didn’t think he’d ever come quite that hard, really, nor had he felt as blissful and content afterward as he realized he actually did right then, although he  _ did  _ let out a tired groan when he rolled off Levi a second later to lie on his back beside him. 

“Yes.” He agreed, smiling and feeling his heart sing — as cuddling with Levi, to him, would just be the amazing icing on an already fantastic cake, really — when Levi immediately shifted so that he could lie at his side, curling up against him and throwing an arm over his chest as he gently rested his head on top of it too.

“Shit.” He murmured then, sounding a bit more coherent, Erwin thought, but not much. “That was good.”

“I’m glad.”

“Was it...I mean, was it good for you, too?” 

Although Erwin, relaxed as he was, had already closed his eyes so that he could further enjoy the blissful afterglow, they snapped back open at Levi’s question, as he’d sounded so charmingly earnest and the last thing Erwin would want was for Levi to think it hadn’t been. 

“Yes, of course.” He answered hurriedly, smiling as he shifted to press a kiss to the top of Levi’s head. “You felt amazing, Levi.”

“Yeah?” 

“Yes. To be honest, I was worried I was going to come as soon as you started.”

Hearing Levi snort at that, Erwin smiled in response and felt Levi return it in just the slightest when he looked up at him and they shared a brief kiss, feeling impossibly fond and satisfied as he again closed his eyes and Levi’s head returned to it’s spot on his chest just underneath his chin. For a few moments, they stayed like that, remaining silent and mostly still with the exception of their fingers, some of which, on Erwin’s part, gently stroked Levi’s hair while Levi used his to rub slow, lazy, almost absent-minded circles into Erwin’s skin, something that he found particularly soothing along with the sound of Levi’s deep, even breathing beside him. 

He enjoyed holding him like this, he thought idly. It felt nice. It felt  _ right _ , as if Levi was meant to be there in his arms, as if he, Erwin, was an incomplete puzzle and Levi was the missing piece he needed — one that he hadn’t even realized he’d been lacking, but whose body fit and melded so perfectly into his own that he was  _ loathe  _ to try to find any reason to dispel the actual notion. Why should he, though? He hadn’t known Levi very long, true, but he made Erwin happy. He liked every part of him so far and  _ longed  _ to find out more, but what did it mean that he felt something  _ this  _ deep about Levi already? What was going to happen? What was this leading to? How could he manage it if things got serious, since— 

Before Erwin’s thoughts could get any further, Levi suddenly shifted beside him and sat up a bit, effectively making him forget all about what he’d been pondering — at least for right then — when he rubbed his hand over Erwin’s chest and looked him in the eye. 

“I’m gonna get us some water.” He said quietly, right before he gave him a very obvious once over as far as he could see and then bent to kiss him, lingering for just a moment before he pulled away and then rolled over to climb off the bed. “Don’t move, because I’m not fucking through with you yet.”

“Not through with me?” Erwin murmured at that, perking back up from his lethargic, inattentive state almost instantly and adopting a small smile — one that was certainly because of the obvious implications behind  _ that  _ suggestive statement, and that was followed by him raising an eyebrow, resituating himself to sit up and lean against the headboard so that he could watch Levi and his perfectly round backside walk across the room. 

Staring at it as he bent over to retrieve two water bottles from a small mini fridge — this was the first full view Erwin had gotten of it, he realized, and if he’d had less self-control he probably would have actually  _ bitten his fist  _ at the sight — he felt his eyes go lidded and the familiar spark of lust reignite in his groin all over again, as he was young, energetic, and impossibly into the gorgeous man who had just been lying pliant and naked in his arms a few moments ago, and not at all deterred or less full of desire just because they’d gotten through having sex a mere 10 minutes before. 

If he was being honest, really, his need had never actually had a chance to even go away in the first place, but of course, it didn’t help that when Levi returned Erwin got a good look at the mess he’d made of him already either, as his hair was plastered to his skull from being sweaty or sticking up in odd places, while his skin remained flushed and reddened because of how hot he must have gotten while they’d been fucking. Also, Erwin noticed, there were a few marks on his neck, marks that  _ he’d  _ left there with his mouth during the most heated moments of the act, and although he knew he should probably feel a bit guilty for that...well, he just  _ didn’t _ , and instead found himself feeling incredibly aroused at the fact that Levi would be wearing them on his skin for at least a couple of days afterward.

“Hey.” Levi said then, teasing Erwin for so obviously gawking when he reached the bed by tossing a water bottle at him, throwing it so suddenly that it was all Erwin could do to raise his hands to catch it before it hit him in the face. “Eyes up here, big guy.”

Laughing, he caught Levi’s gaze — as well as the now familiar, mischievous, playful look behind it that made Erwin feel impossibly excited — and smiled, raising an eyebrow again and watching as he climbed onto the bed and right back into his lap, straddling Erwin’s thighs and making a show of opening his water to drink while Erwin slowly did the same. 

“Think you can get it up again?” He asked after he was done, closing the bottle and tossing it aside so that he could plant both his palms down on Erwin’s shoulders. 

His hands were cool, Erwin thought, from holding the refrigerated water, and the touch felt nice on his still warm skin. Even so, he, too, set his bottle aside and reached out to grab one set of fingers, bringing them up to his mouth for a kiss and watching Levi bite his lip and lower his eyelids and give him as much of a heated, impassioned look as he could obviously muster.

“For you? Of course.” Erwin answered though, smiling while he used his other hand to touch Levi’s waist and he leaned forward even closer. “I can do this all night, Levi.”

“All night?” Levi muttered, snorting a bit even as his eyes flashed at Erwin’s response. 

“Yes, all night.”

“It’s not even 10 yet.”

“Well, we’re going to be up for a while then, aren’t we?”

“Hm...” Levi replied, taking that moment to reach down between them so that he could grasp Erwin’s cock. He wasn’t all the way hard again, not yet, but he was getting there and knew it wouldn’t be much longer with Levi in his lap and touching him like this — something that Levi obviously sensed, since he squeezed him gently even as he opened his mouth to play coy. “We’ll see about that.”

“Yes, I suppose we will.” Erwin said, smiling at Levi and remaining still like that for a few seconds, staring at Levi as Levi stared back at him with his eyes playfully narrowed until he couldn’t resist the urge he had to kiss him anymore, wrapping his arms around Levi’s waist and flipping them both over so suddenly that Levi made a loud, yelping sound out of surprise. 

It was ungraceful, Erwin thought, which was cute and made him laugh because Levi was normally so in control of himself, ending up smiling that much wider when Levi lightly slammed his fist down onto his shoulder as if to curse at him for what he’d done, only able to express it that way, of course, because Erwin had pressed their lips together and was not going to let up anytime soon. Naturally, though, Levi melted right into it even if he acted disgruntled, and...well, basically, that was how they spent the next 2 weeks, wrapped up in each other, in getting to know the other better by exploring and learning and taking as much time as they could to do so, barely going even one single day without meeting up to do something together in person. 

In the morning, Erwin usually had to work, but that did not stop him from seeing Levi every afternoon that he could — something that was made a lot easier because of the fact that Levi rarely had anything else going on, too. Either he would meet Erwin at his boat and they would go fishing or walk around town or just drink beer, or Erwin would drive his old, rusty vehicle up the mountain to go ahead and spend the rest of his day at Levi’s place. Usually, he would end up there regardless so that they could have sex in Levi’s big bed at night and then again in the morning, but when he went early, they would eat dinner with his family, who Erwin readily admitted that he liked well enough, and swim in the pool or play games, all before retiring and doing things that  _ he  _ felt would have made a porn star blush. 

Alright, he thought, maybe what they did in the bedroom wasn’t  _ that  _ extreme, but he was getting laid,  _ a lot.  _ And by a lot he meant more in one week than he had in his entire life, which was admittedly short, but still. Clearly, he knew then, he should have kissed Levi much, much earlier, as not only was he wanting but he was insatiable, too, and the sex was fantastic, enough so that he still didn’t understand how he’d gotten so lucky to have Levi pay attention to him in the first place, much less spend all this time with him and sleep with him over and over again and keep him in his bed until they simply ended up too exhausted to continue.

Of course, as he had said to him the first time, that wasn’t the only thing Erwin liked about Levi, or wanted out of this. No, although he hadn’t known it was possible to be  _ this  _ into someone — or to have someone be this into him either, which made him feel amazing on so many different levels — he enjoyed spending time with Levi when they weren’t fucking...or frotting, or fondling, or fixing their mouths on every sensitive place below their belts that they could reach. He was devastatingly attractive and intoxicating to Erwin, yes, but he was astoundingly caring, too, as well as soft-hearted and selfless even though he kept it hidden behind a rough type of exterior.

Unraveling some of that had been a real pleasure, Erwin thought, but despite the fact that he knew he wasn’t through yet, he also knew that Levi was sharp and adventurous in his own way, and funny, too. He made Erwin laugh. He made him happy, and had completely rid him of the loneliness that often plagued him because of how he lived his life on the island. In fact, he found Levi’s city attributes to be completely charming even while other people he knew disliked tourists, and was a bit fascinated with how he got on at home, as he hadn’t been anywhere else in years and now felt almost desperate at times to leave.

Not for good, of course, but perhaps foolishly, he imagined himself visiting Levi one day, imagined them being a couple, a real one, and knew he wanted this...this thing that they were doing to have a name, to extend into the future because Levi was amazing and his thoughts about the missing puzzle piece had only gotten stronger as the days had wore on. As far as he knew, Levi liked being around him a lot as well, but there was a potential problem, something that Erwin had tried not to think about — he was having a lot of fun, and feared bringing it up because he didn’t want things to end — and ignored for as long as he could, right up until his friend Mike blurted it out with no hesitation as he’d been cleaning his boat. 

He’d been straightening things up, getting rid of the clutter, putting up curtains, and scrubbing everything down from bow to stern because he’d finally convinced Levi to spend the night with him there instead of at the guest house, when Mike had walked over, making him realize that he could not pretend this thing wasn’t going to happen any longer lest he end up with his heart in pieces on the floor. Really, he knew, it was already too late for that, but either way, as much as he dreaded it, as much as he worried about what Levi would say or that he would hurt him, he decided that they need to talk, and planned on doing it that night to just get it out of the way. 


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Levi, wait.” Erwin said, attempting to offer him a smile, Levi saw, but failing to make it meet his eyes — something that did nothing to reassure him, especially after what it was that he said next. “I’m sorry. I know this will sound bad, but can we talk about something?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this wasn't supposed to be this dramatic when i wrote it but oh well

_ An extra pillow, _ Levi asked himself? Check. A robe, his handheld fan, and the waterproof cell phone case he’d bought at a shop? Check, check, and check. All the special items he felt like he needed to spend the night on Erwin’s boat were there — things that would keep him comfortable, covered up in case of any prying eyes at the dock, cool, and connected should the damned house sink — along with the normal stuff he needed, as well as the  _ sexy surprise  _ he’d gotten for Erwin after visiting a different store in the  _ livelier  _ section of town where all the clubs were.

Biting back a smile as he thought about Erwin’s reaction to it, Levi shoved the item into his backpack and felt his heart flutter, too, experiencing the usual wave of excitement he always did when he anticipated seeing Erwin again soon. The way he looked forward to it hadn’t changed any over the past while, he knew, because his feelings for Erwin had only grown stronger and more real, so much so that he might have been embarrassed about falling for another guy so stupidly fast if he didn’t  _ like  _ Erwin too much to actually fucking care. 

He was the perfect man, Levi had decided by then. He was thoughtful and handsome and romantic and kind, as well as fucking  _ smart _ , and he made Levi feel like nothing in the world could ever go wrong again while he was around him. He made him feel like he was special, and wanted, and cared for in a way that he hadn’t yet experienced with another guy — that is, because of himself and not just because he had a nice ass — and although he hadn’t known, really, that he’d been missing anything like that, he was now starting to believe that he’d found someone who was right for him, who understood him and who he could see himself being with long-term because of how they clicked and worked together so well. 

Because of that, Levi thought that it was pretty fucking ironic how much he’d dreaded vacationing on the island before and how he just hadn’t wanted to come there at all, as he now knew that had he not...well, then obviously he wouldn’t have met Erwin, and wouldn’t currently be having the time of his life and experiencing the best fucking summer he’d ever had. Sighing happily as he thought about how much fun they’d had over the past few weeks just fishing and rolling around in bed — he knew they both weren’t  _ only  _ in this for the sex, of course, but it was fucking addictive, in a way, and they didn’t waste  _ any  _ opportunity they had to enjoy it — and hanging out, he tried not to think about how it would have to come to an end, as those were things that he was still not sure how to deal with and he didn’t want to bring himself down. 

That being said, he knew, absolutely fucking  _ knew  _ right away what Erwin was going to say when Levi arrived at his place and he seemed distracted before asking him if they could talk, a realization that suddenly gave him the awful, sinking feeling that this special thing he’d found was about to come to a shitty end.

First, though, he left the guest house and rode down the mountain on his pink bike. For some stupid reason, he’d grown fond of it by then, and had refused Uri when he’d offered to buy Levi another one after he glimpsed him riding it. Of course, he probably would have told him ‘no’ anyway, as although Uri was generous — which was why Levi had not been surprised when Erwin had told him about all the philanthropic shit he’d done on the island — he and his mother had never been quick to just accept free handouts, and actually, their trip to the island had been the first offer they’d taken him up on in a while. 

Still, he found it ridiculous that Uri should buy him a new bike when he was only going to be there for another month and a half longer and he already had a functioning one right there, Levi kept using it to travel, and rode it down to the marina that day to see Erwin as he had so many other times before. Walking up the now familiar path on the docks to his boat, he did not glimpse him standing around or anything as he approached, but did notice that there were clearly curtains hung up on the inside of the windows in his boat.

He could see the outline of their shape through them even if it was stupidly bright out, and had to bite back a pleased smile, as that was the one condition Erwin had needed to meet before Levi agreed to spend the night on his houseboat. At that point, he didn’t necessarily hate the idea or anything — no, by then, he was pretty sure he’d  _ willingly  _ sleep on sand as long as Erwin was there with him — he just still hadn’t really thought it necessary when to him, the guest house was perfectly fine. However, Erwin only had to ask him twice before he realized that it was important to him for some reason, so much so that he promised Levi he would make everything spotless and ensure that he was comfortable once he agreed. 

Of course, that was all well and fucking good, he thought, especially since Erwin’s living space was cluttered in shit that actually belonged in the storage unit he owned, apparently, but the main thing Levi didn’t want was some freak on the docks catching sight of his naked ass once they’d torn each other’s clothes off on the boat. Feeling his heartbeat pick up, though, as he again thought about the surprise he’d brought, Levi ended up hopping onto the deck by himself, just as Erwin walked out of the inside with a beer in hand and a noticeably odd looking smile on his face. 

It was small, Levi thought, and appeared a little mournful for some reason, but he didn’t realize why until a few minutes later, after Erwin had set the beer aside and opened his arms so that Levi could step inside them for a long, warm hug. 

“Hi, Levi.” He said, while Levi immediately embraced him tightly and pressed his face into Erwin’s chest. 

“Hey.” He replied, taking the time to inhale Erwin’s scent and soak in the warmth coming from his body — a comforting thing that never failed to make him feel happy and like he was floating. “I missed you like shit.”

Chuckling because he  _ had  _ just been at Levi’s guest house that morning even if it  _ was  _ true, Erwin bent to kiss Levi’s cheek, giving him a quick peck on the lips, too, after Levi stood up onto his tiptoes and wound his arms around Erwin’s neck to hear his response. “I missed you too.”

“Yeah? How much?” 

“A lot, Levi.”

“I kept thinking about you all fucking day.”

“Me too. I…” Erwin trailed off, his mouth hanging open for a moment like he wanted to say something else — right before he shut it and gave Levi that strange, sad looking smile again. 

“Hey.” He asked once he saw it again, drawing his brows down in concern because, although the signs were subtle, Erwin’s eyes weren’t as bright, and he didn’t seem his usual genial, obviously-glad-to-see-him self, which was something that Levi had gotten used to every time he’d come over. Was something wrong, he wondered? “You alright?”

“Yes, I’m fine.”

“Why don’t you show me what you did with the boat then, huh? I saw the curtains, and I want to see them.”

“Ah...okay.”

Frowning, Levi watched Erwin turned away so that he could lead him inside, noticing the stiffness of his shoulders as he did so and not at  _ all  _ believing that he was ‘fine’ as he’d said. Clearly, something was up, but was he just tired, or hungry? He  _ had  _ awoken early that day and done a lot of work, but what if it was something else? Would he tell Levi if it was?

“I finished hanging them up just before you got here.” He murmured when Levi followed him into the house, gesturing to the blue curtains that now hung over a small window above Erwin’s kitchenette sink.

They were simple, of course, and probably cheap, but obviously Levi didn’t care about that shit at all. No, he was just grateful and now even more fond because of the fact that Erwin had done that for him, but he was also  _ really  _ starting to feel a little bit concerned. He felt worried for Erwin, who he’d never seen not all lively-eyed smiles and flirty, cheerful words around  _ him  _ until then, and suddenly desired nothing more than to throw himself into Erwin’s arms and make whatever it was all better. 

“Shit. They look really good.” He said at that thought, taking Erwin’s hand as he rid himself of the backpack he’d still been wearing, too. “You did a good job, Erwin.”

“Thank you, Levi. Although it wasn’t hard. They’re just curtains.”

“Yeah, but they look good, and now no one will see us fucking later on, right?”

Wrapping his free arm around Erwin’s middle, Levi used his other to tug at Erwin so that he was facing him, pulling him closer and then redirecting his hands so that they were now planted over his own waist. He helped Erwin to hold him like that and then rubbed at his chest, even giving him a rare,  _ purposeful  _ smile as he looked up to meet his sharp gaze. 

“I suppose not.” Erwin replied quietly, eyeing Levi very carefully and remaining still while he pushed himself onto his toes to kiss his cheek. 

“I got a surprise for you this time, big guy.” Levi continued, pushing past the growing concern that  _ he  _ had done something wrong because of Erwin’s interactions with him — or the lack thereof. 

He seemed hesitant to touch him now, Levi thought, and although he hadn’t moved his hands from his waist he’d done nothing to tighten his grip, pull him closer, or respond to the affection, either, something that had never happened not even once during the past month they’d been seeing each other on the island. 

“I think you’ll like it.” He tried again, even as his heart began to pound rapidly in near-panic. Moving to kiss Erwin on the lips this time, he grabbed onto his shirt and began to tug him backward towards the couch, staring at him intently in an attempt to read his expression as he continued. “Wanna see?”

Although Erwin seemed to relent for a moment, they only made it one step before he suddenly froze, stopping in place and grabbing both of Levi’s hands before he looked at him and shook his head. 

“Levi, wait.” He said, attempting to offer him a smile, Levi saw, but failing to make it meet his eyes — something that did nothing to reassure him,  _ especially  _ after what it was that he said next. “I’m sorry. I know this will sound bad, but can we talk about something?”

“Talk?” Levi repeated, feeling his eyes widen as a pit seemed to open up in his stomach, sucking up every positive thought and sensation he had in his entire body because...well, suddenly, he  _ knew  _ what this was about. 

Erwin was going to end things with him, he thought, because he was leaving, because he was only vacationing there and would be gone in just over a month, and they’d let this go too far and he didn’t want to be with Levi anymore because of all that shit. Erwin didn’t want long distance, Levi felt sure of for some reason, and was going to stop this, to break his fucking heart even though he was a goddamn fool and should have brought this up earlier in the first place. 

_ Shit.  _ He thought, trying to swallow down his emotions. Why had he not? He’d considered that this might happen several weeks ago, of course, but he’d ignored the question for too long, been in denial about the fact that Erwin might not want to continue this like he did regardless of his trip ending because he’d just been so happy. He’d been having fun, but he didn’t blame Erwin, not really. It wasn’t his fault, as  _ he  _ was the one who should have been more careful. 

“We don’t have to talk.” Levi said then, though, because even if he did understand Erwin’s position and didn’t want him to get hurt either, he honestly did not think he could make it through that conversation without getting upset like a fucking idiot. Already, in fact, he could feel his chest growing tight like he might cry, but he swallowed it down, stepping around Erwin so that he could grab his backpack and flee before he couldn’t hold it back anymore. “I get it. I understand, Erwin, and it’s okay. Fuck, it was really good to meet you, though, and I— 

“Levi, what are you doing?” Erwin interrupted then, suddenly sounding about as stricken as Levi felt. The change in his voice — which had been even and calm despite everything up until then — was so noticeable that it caused Levi to pause for a half second, his brows drawing down in confusion and giving Erwin the amount of time that he needed to step closer to him again and reach out to grab his arm. “Wait, please.”

“Why? I  _ know  _ what you’re going to say!” Levi choked out then, trying to will himself to break Erwin’s grip and just go, but failing, as something in Erwin’s expression — which he allowed himself to glimpse, briefly — looked pained enough for him to feel the tiniest bit of hope that he was wrong. 

“No, you don’t. Please, just listen.”

“I’m leaving, Erwin, I know that. I know that you— 

“That I what?” Erwin interrupted, sounding soft despite the forcefulness of his words. Pausing, then, to open his mouth and close it again as if he was searching for words, he stared at Levi — who had turned to face him in just the slightest — and then swallowed, fixing his expression into something that actually seemed hopeful before he finally continued. “That I want you to be my boyfriend?”

Immediately, Levi felt shocked. His breath caught in his chest and his heart seemed to stop beating, and the sudden jolt of emotions he felt was so strong it was almost as if he’d been shot. Then, though, then he processed Erwin’s words, but honestly didn’t know if he could believe it. He  _ couldn’t  _ have heard Erwin right, he thought. Had he?

“What?” He breathed, though, because if he  _ had  _ understood him, if Erwin had said what he hoped he’d said, then that would mean that...well, then Erwin wouldn’t care about— 

“That’s what I was going to say, Levi.” Erwin said then, sounding more confident — at least in the way that he spoke — than he had before, as if he’d been nervous and not sure of exactly how to say all of this to him just yet. “Among other things.”

“...Other things?” 

“I don’t care that you’ll be leaving, Levi. I mean...I don’t  _ want  _ you to go, but I know that’s what will happen, and I want to keep seeing you anyway. I like you. A lot, actually. In fact, I think I’m falling in love with you, and I know we haven’t put a name to this yet but I want it to be real _. _ Long distance is hard, I’m sure, but I think...no, I  _ know  _ that this is something special, and I don’t want to let you go just because of that. I’m willing to give it a shot, as long as you are, at least.”

“Oh.” Levi uttered at that, honestly feeling dumbstruck by everything that he just heard. 

Erwin was willing to try long distance? He wanted them to have a real relationship? He was  _ falling in love with him?  _ As surprising as it was for him to hear, though — especially since he’d been convinced just moments before that Erwin was about to dump him — he did not have to ask himself if he felt the same way, as he already knew that he did, because what else could the deep, warm feelings he felt for Erwin and the connection he was building with him be but the beginnings of love? He had never experienced it, not romantically, but he was sure, then, beyond a doubt that he was right, and as such, could not help what he proclaimed next because of how stupid he’d fucking been before.

“I’m such a fucking idiot. Erwin, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean...I...” Trailing off, it was now Levi’s turn to have to search for words, suddenly finding himself struggling between happiness and the guilt that he felt for how he’d...well, assumed the absolute  _ worst _ . As much as he thought he did need to apologize for that, though, he thought that it was probably more important that he reassure Erwin and answer his question first, because he honestly looked nervous again and was squeezing Levi’s hand so tightly that it almost hurt. “Yeah. I mean... _ yes. _ I want that too, Erwin. Fuck, I want all of it. I want to be your boyfriend, and to keep seeing you and to fall in love with you because I...I’m already halfway there. I don’t give a shit about long distance. I want...I— 

Levi could not finish, and this time, it wasn’t because he’d run out of things to say or started to struggle with words. No,  _ this  _ time he couldn’t finish because Erwin had wrapped his arms around him, pulled him to his chest, and kissed him hard, apparently unable to hold back after what Levi’s words must have made him feel. He was overwhelmingly happy, Levi knew, and excited and relieved and fucking smitten because that’s what he was experiencing too, and as such, there was obviously no other way to respond than to melt into Erwin’s embrace, throwing his arms around his neck as he did so and making a needy sound in his throat that he couldn’t have even hoped to be able to control. 

Clutching at him as tightly as he could — he didn’t want to let go, he thought,  _ ever  _ — he screwed his eyes shut and kissed Erwin back with everything he had, the two of them moving their lips together so hurriedly that Levi found himself panting for breath in what felt like less than a minute. Briefly, while they did so, he wondered if they should finish talking about this before they got  _ too  _ carried away, but then decided that everything that  _ needed  _ to be said had already come out of his mouth, realizing even as their hands began to wander that all he wanted now was to be as close to Erwin as he could possibly fucking get. 

Suddenly desperate for the intimacy that he had become so familiar with over the past few weeks, in fact, Levi did not think twice when they ended up wrapped around each other on the couch a few minutes later, groping and kissing while his heart pounded in his eardrums and desire exploded inside of him and clawed at his belly, causing him to squirm underneath Erwin for more contact even while Erwin jerked the running shorts he wore over his hips and completely off of his legs. 

Clearly, Levi thought, he had completely surrendered himself to his emotions just as much as Levi had, and because of that, because they were both being driven only by what they felt, it did not take long before they were writhing and moaning and frotting against each other — as best as Levi could, anyway, as he’d somehow ended up with his legs over Erwin’s shoulders and sticking up into the air — once Erwin took both their cocks in one of his big palms and started stroking. 

“Fuck.” Levi breathed after he’d licked his hand and grabbed him, biting his lip and arching his back even as he dug his nails into Erwin’s shoulders to pull him down closer. 

He wasn’t even all the way hard yet, he thought, neither of them were because this had all just happened so fucking fast, but it was obviously nothing for Erwin to touch them both until they ended up stiff and leaking, until the slickness from that and Erwin’s spit meant that his cock slid so easily against Erwin’s and inside his hand that it made his toes curl. It felt amazing right from the beginning and it didn’t help that Erwin was jerking them off quick, kissing Levi every other second from where he’d pressed their foreheads together until Levi found himself close to becoming overwhelmed with the pleasure. 

“Oh...fuck...” He moaned then, reaching up to clasp Erwin’s cheeks while he stared into his eyes, noticing, even while he tried to thrust harder into Erwin’s palm and felt Erwin’s hips moving on top of him like that too, how open his expression was, how adoring and warm and soft it was — a sight which he stared at for as long as he could until he wasn’t able to keep his eyes open anymore. 

“Oh fuck!” He said louder, gasping and failing to keep from running his fucking mouth, apparently, even as the volume of his voice increased while he grew closer to coming. “Oh fuck, oh fuck, oh fuck, oh f... _ Erwin!” _

Repeating the words like a mantra, Levi felt the pleasure build and build and build — stringing him up tight — until it suddenly crested and he released, cutting himself off to cry out Erwin’s name as he shuddered and clutched at him and found himself lost underneath a wave of bliss so strong that he swore he nearly forgot his fucking name. His orgasm seemed to last forever this time, he thought, perhaps because Erwin continued to squeeze and tug on him, seemingly intent on milking every last drop of come from his cock even as he fell apart too. 

Of course, Levi was not too far gone to notice that he had even though he was trembling and gasping enough to make his throat feel raw, as listening, watching, and feeling Erwin release at the same time as him made his stupid heart feel even fuller than it already actually was. He felt impossibly close to Erwin when that happened, in fact, which was what he’d been looking for, what he’d wanted after the emotionally charged conversation they’d just had — where they’d both confessed their feelings for the first time, he reminded himself — and as such, could not stop himself from returning Erwin’s smile once they both finally recovered and he managed to look Levi in the eye. 

“Levi.” He murmured, all but grinning at him, really, because of what they’d just done and what they’d talked about earlier. Bringing a hand up to cup Levi’s cheek, he released his legs and they stared at each other like that for a few moments in a comfortable silence, honestly not needing any words to know how happy they both were until they suddenly hugged, until Erwin wrapped his arms around Levi’s torso and buried his face against Levi’s neck while he did the same to Erwin’s and nuzzled the top of his hair. “I’m so happy. I’m so glad that...I— 

“I know, Erwin. Me too.” Levi replied, cradling his head now and almost sighing in bliss as he felt Erwin breathing on top of him. 

Like that, they stayed for a few more moments, just holding onto each other and savoring their newfound closeness — or at least, the fact that they had a name for it:  _ boyfriend  _ — until Levi, who had honestly almost dozed off, suddenly had a thought so jarring that it caused him to flinch and open his eyes in a half panic. 

“Shit.” He said, lifting his head and looking in the direction of the window. “We didn’t close the fucking curtains. After all that, we left them open, and…”

Trailing off when Erwin started laughing almost uproariously, Levi glanced back down at him with a small frown, wondering what could be so funny and certainly not finding himself prepared for what Erwin said next: “I don’t think it would have mattered, Levi. You were being _so_ _loud_ that my neighbors probably heard you shouting my name across the dock.”


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Unable to stop smiling every time he thought the word ‘boyfriend,’ Erwin felt so happy that he could barely even contain it, experiencing an almost childlike glee at the fact that not only did Levi want to be in a relationship with him, but he returned all of his strong feelings too and had told him he was falling in love with him, assuring Erwin that he also thought long distance was worth a try as long as there was a chance that it meant they could be together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sooo i wrote this a while back and after rereading it i'm worried it might be confusing, so just in case the first part is a flashback to erwin's conversation with mike, which happened before levi came over. also i have a feeling that the formatting is going to be extremely fucked up because of all the italics so if it is My Bad. 
> 
> in other news, the amazing @acrknowyou on twitter and tumblr drew some beautiful fanart for this fic and i've been crying about it for 24 hours now (thank u again bb :3 <3) please check it out here and give it a like and a reblog:
> 
> https://acrknowyou.tumblr.com/post/178638504011/fanart-of-the-amazing-fic-dont-let-me-go-by

_ “Erwin!” Mike called out to him, walking up and causing Erwin to pause mid-sweep from where he’d been taking a broom to the deck of his boat.  _

_ Glancing over, he immediately saw Mike approaching with a six pack of beer in his hand  _ — _ beer that he held up and shook ever so slightly so that Erwin could see why he’d come.  _

_ “Hello, Mike.” He answered at that, setting aside the broom and smiling as his friend boarded the boat. “Finally come to pay your debts?” _

_ Obviously, Erwin was referring to the beers that Mike owed him after he’d sent Levi to his shop over a month ago, and shook his head teasingly even as the two shared a quick, friendly hug. Although he had work to do to prepare for Levi’s visit still, he knew there was no harm in taking a break, and wordlessly took a beer from Mike before they sat down at Erwin’s small table to drink.  _

_ “I’ve been busy.” Mike said to excuse his alcohol related tardiness, knocking back a swig before he sniffed and looked Erwin in the eye. “What about you? I haven’t seen you around much lately.” _

_ “Oh. I’ve been around. Just busy too.” Erwin replied, knowing, of course, that Mike was right and it was actually because of Levi.  _

_ “You busy tonight? I hear there’s a pretty rad party going down at Garrison Beach.” _

_ “Ah...I’m not sure. I’m having a guest tonight, actually.” _

_ “Is that why you were holding that broom? I didn’t think you even owned one.” _

_ “I do. I was cleaning.” Erwin laughed, taking a drink from his own beer and averting his eyes to look down at the table, smiling as he did so because it was impossible for him  _ not  _ to when he thought about Levi who was, of course, the guest. _

_ Unfortunately, it must have given something away, as Mike let out a small chuckle and raised his eyebrows at Erwin’s expression. “So is it a guest, or a booty call? I was going to ask you to come to the party so you could get laid for once, but if you already are, congratulations.” _

_ Surprised, Erwin looked right back up at Mike to see that although his face was relatively blank and relaxed, there was a small smile playing about his mouth which let him know right away that  _ he _ knew exactly what kind of guest he was going to have despite his questions. Really, though, he wasn’t surprised  _ — _ he hadn’t  _ hidden _ Levi, and Mike could have seen them around together easily if he’d been looking  _ — _ and he supposed there wasn’t any harm in him knowing, right? Erwin’s initial thoughts said no, but for some reason, he found himself feeling a bit hesitant to open up to him about it all the way. _

_ “I...well, I suppose I am.” He said though, because he also didn’t think he could deny it, either. “I’ve been seeing someone, but he’s not just a booty call.” _

_ “He? Don’t tell me it’s that little angry guy you sent to my shop.” _

_ Again, Erwin could not hold back a smile as he stared into his beer, partly because it  _ was  _ that little angry guy, and partly because Erwin knew Levi was far, far more than Mike’s amusing description and it made his heart flutter. _

_ “It is?” Mike said then, after staring at Erwin for another long moment and then shaking his head in mock disbelief. “Wow. He seemed pretty grumpy. How’d you manage that?” _

_ “I don’t know, Mike. He likes me for some reason. And he’s not  _ always  _ grumpy; he’s actually very kind.” _

_ “What’s he do? I mean, where’s he from?” _

_ Here, Erwin hesitated again, and now realized why. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to tell his friend Mike about Levi, he thought, because Levi made him happy. No, it was just...there was still so much uncertainty about what they were doing together  _ —  _ despite how much he’d tried to ignore it  _ —  _ because Levi was just a ‘tourist,’ and he almost knew what it was that Mike was going to say. Sure enough, after Erwin answered his questions and inevitably ended up gushing a bit about Levi and all the time they’d spent together because he couldn’t help it, he fixed Erwin with another long, appraising look out from underneath his bangs, right before he sniffed again and hummed thoughtfully before opening another beer.  _

_ “Sounds pretty serious.” He muttered, while Erwin shifted uneasily beside him and shrugged, trying to play it off but unsurprisingly failing in front of Mike. _

_ “Maybe.” _

_ “Maybe? Ah, dude...what are you doing?” _

_ “What do you mean?” _

_ “I mean...you can’t look like this.” _

_ “Like what?” _

_ “Like you’re in love with the guy. He’s going to leave at the end of the summer. Who knows if he’ll come back. I thought you knew better?” _

_ Although Mike’s words sounded harsh, Erwin understood why he was saying them. They were old friends, after all, and he was probably just looking out for him. Either way, though, he wasn’t wrong. Erwin did know better. He’d lived there all his life and watched people come and go, and it was a common ‘rule’ among people in his age group to not date tourists, as it was foolish and would only lead to bad news. Of course, one night stands and summer flings were different, but that wasn’t what he and Levi were doing, and he hadn’t pursued him because he only wanted something like that, either. _

_ To be honest, he hadn’t really had any idea what he was looking for when they’d met, because he hadn’t thought about it too deeply. He’d just followed his heart because things with Levi had felt so right from the very beginning  _ — _ indeed, he wasn’t in love yet as Mike had said, but he was falling fast and he wasn’t afraid to admit it  _ —  _ but now he was starting to wonder if it had been a mistake. He’d pushed off thinking about it because if it was then...well, it would hurt, but he supposed he had no one to blame for that but himself. Continuing to put it off would only make things worse, and he probably owed it to Levi to be honest about what he wanted as well so neither one of them would have to waste anymore time if they weren’t on the same page. _

_ “Mike, I...with him, I feel like long distance could work.” He said though, as even if he did appreciate his friend’s opinion, even if he was already making plans in his head to have this conversation with Levi, he couldn’t bring himself to admit that it could go wrong out loud. “I appreciate your concern, but you don’t need to worry about me. I have it under control, and I’ll be fine, alright?” _

Erwin’s words then had been preemptive, but thankfully, it had all worked out — although not, of course, without just a bit of drama.

“It’s fine, Levi.” Erwin was saying hours later, assuring Levi, his  _ boyfriend _ , that he had not done anything wrong by reacting to his request to have a ‘talk’ so strongly. 

Sure, he thought, he hadn’t expected Levi to try and flee like that when he’d said it, but he understood why when Levi explained that he’d assumed Erwin was about to end things with him. In truth, he’d had the same exact worries Erwin had when it came to the reality of discussing the fact that he had to leave, which did make him wish that he’d brought it up a lot sooner. Still, neither of them could have known, and regardless, it didn’t matter now anyway when things had gone perfectly and Levi was now officially  _ his  _ for as long as they could make this work. 

Unable to stop smiling every time he thought the word ‘boyfriend,’ Erwin felt so happy that he could barely even contain it, experiencing an almost childlike glee at the fact that not only did Levi want to be in a relationship with him, but he returned all of his strong feelings too and had told him he was falling in love with him, assuring Erwin that he also thought long distance was worth a try as long as there was a chance that it meant they could be together. Having not been this glad in ages, he was loathe to move from where they were still cuddled up on the couch after the quick, spontaneous,  _ intense  _ orgasms they’d had, enjoying simply talking about things more and holding Levi in his arms even if it was a loveseat and his legs were hanging off the edge at the knee. 

“You planning to let me go anytime soon, then, or are we gonna stay here all night?” Levi teased though, causing Erwin to smile from where he’d ended up lying on his back with Levi halfway on top of him. 

He was pressed tight at Erwin’s side, he thought, in between his body and the back of the couch with a leg and an arm thrown haphazardly over him, and made no move to get up himself despite what he’d just said to Erwin. Instead, he just tilted his head up and pressed lazy kisses to his cheek, kisses that made Erwin smile that much wider and tighten his arms around Levi, honestly having to hold back a blissful sigh because of how content and satisfied he was at the fact that the gorgeous man in his arms wasn’t going to be going away — at least, he thought, not metaphorically, as they did still have to face the fact that they were going to have to part eventually. 

It was unfortunate no matter what, but at least right then the knowledge that they’d still be in a relationship was enough to chase the dread away, as Erwin was just relieved to know for sure where this was headed, and knew that the only thing left to do now was to make the most of Levi’s remaining time there on the island. That would be fun, he thought, but unfortunately, Levi was right: they couldn’t do that if  _ one _ of them didn’t move off the couch. As such, Erwin sighed in defeat instead of anything else, turning his head so that he could kiss Levi — his  _ boyfriend _ , he could not help but remind himself again — on the forehead before he spoke again. 

“I suppose I can let you go.” He murmured too, pulling back enough to look Levi in the eye. “For a little while.”

Scoffing, Levi still didn’t move right away even though Erwin completely relaxed his grip on him, and instead gave him a peck on the lips that then, naturally, turned into a real, open-mouthed kiss as Levi shifted to sit on top of him for a bit. Of course, it was slow and gentle and even though they’d closed their eyes to enjoy it they both knew it wasn’t leading to anything this time, but it still gave Erwin the opportunity to reach around and cup both of Levi’s plump ass cheeks, as he had obviously not put any pants back on after Erwin had...well, been consumed with passion and practically torn his running shorts off before throwing them across the room. 

To be honest, he’d had the urge to do that from the moment he’d laid eyes on Levi that evening, as the shorts were  _ tiny  _ and  _ tight  _ and  _ tempting  _ enough for him to forget all about what he’d wanted to talk to Levi about — or at least, almost. Although he hadn’t necessarily planned to get right into that conversation as soon as Levi had arrived, his emotions, which he swore he’d always had careful control of before he’d met Levi, had gotten the better of him, and he supposed he’d given something away because of how seeing him made his heart ache at the thought of possibly saying goodbye. 

As such, Levi had noticed something but his attempt to distract him with sex was something that he couldn’t, in good conscious, allow to happen before they talked because he did not want to take advantage of him, but once they cleared up the misunderstanding — at first, Erwin had been perplexed by Levi’s reaction until he’d realized, or at least, had a thought that made him hope, that he feared the same thing Erwin did and didn’t want this to end — and discussed their feelings, Erwin felt such a frantic, overwhelming need for Levi that he’d thought he might explode.

Of course, he actually had, he knew, in a way. All over Levi’s shirt, in fact, although Levi had too because Erwin had made sure of that, but he had apparently somehow missed the mess or forgotten about how bad it was until just now, when he finally ended their kissing and slid off of Erwin’s middle to stand up in front of the couch. 

“What do you want to do tonight, anyway? Maybe we can... _ shit.” _ He had started to say, stopping as he looked down at the loose tank top he’d been wearing to pull it taut by the hem. 

“Maybe we can _what_ _ , _ Levi? Shit?" Erwin repeated, teasing, obviously, because he figured it would make Levi laugh, as he slowly sat up and carefully stretched out his legs. 

They’d fallen asleep because of how they’d been hanging over the arm of the couch, he thought, but it was hard for him to care about the approaching pins and needles when the bottom half of Levi’s round ass was peeking out from underneath his tank top. 

“No, you fucker. You jizzed all over my shirt.” Levi said, scoffing as he stepped over to jerk the curtains closed — he’d flushed so deeply when he’d realized they’d been left open, Erwin remembered, and then even deeper after he’d teased him about how he’d screamed — before he, in turn, jerked his tank top over his head too, tossing it playfully at Erwin’s head and forcing him to move fast to catch it so that it wouldn’t obstruct his view of Levi in front of him. 

Now, Erwin saw, he was completely nude, naked and within arms reach and on his boat, and not to mention for the 100th time, his  _ boyfriend _ , which was a thought that made him smile widely all over again while watching Levi look for his shorts in front of him. Again, he felt impossibly happy — so happy, in fact, that he forgot to tease Levi about how it wasn’t just him who ‘jizzed’ on his shirt, but the both of them — as those were all things he’d only dreamed of before and could scarcely believe for a moment that they’d all come true. 

“What?” Levi asked when he saw how he was all but grinning in his direction, seeming to sense what he must have been thinking, though, because his voice had lowered to a soft murmur and he bit his lip while he looked at him. 

Watching him bend to pluck his shorts up off the floor — they’d flown back behind Erwin’s tiny breakfast table — and then pull them on, he shook his head nonchalantly as if to brush it off but then spoke anyway, eyeing Levi gently while he raised an eyebrow and stepped closer. “Nothing. I’m just...so glad, that’s all.”

“Oh. Yeah.” Levi agreed, blushing adorably and swallowing thickly but returning to Erwin’s arms anyway, wrapping his own around his head while Erwin laid it on his stomach and hugged his legs. For a minute or two, they stayed like that, quiet while Levi ran fingers through Erwin’s hair and Erwin placed gentle kisses against his skin, just soaking in the moment one last time before Levi sighed a bit solemnly and Erwin pulled away. “Erwin, it’s...it’s going to suck when— 

“I know.” Erwin replied, because, of course, he was quite sure of what Levi had been about to say:  _ It’s going to suck when I have to leave.  _

“How will we manage this shit?” He asked, which was a question that Erwin had pondered a lot, and which he hoped he could answer in a way that would keep Levi’s frown from becoming any deeper than it already was. 

He didn’t want either of them to become mired in this already, he thought, when they still did have a decent bit of time left, and when right then, there were much other, happier things that had occured that he, for one, thought deserved a good amount of celebration before they began to miss each other in advance.

“Text. Skype. Voice chat.” He replied while keeping that in mind, rubbing at Levi’s back as soothingly as he could and trying to sound reassuring. “That’s what I do with my father, and it works well. I don’t talk to him everyday, but with you I could. We could make time to Skype every night, and text like we do now.”

At that, Erwin heard Levi hum thoughtfully as if to consider what he’d said, but he’d been quite purposefully optimistic and he worried that Levi knew it. Of course, none of that was as simple as he’d made it sound, because the internet on the island  _ sometimes _ made Skype impossible, and finding time to talk would depend heavily on their university schedules too. Still, they could probably make it work, but would that actually be enough for Levi? Erwin had assumed that it would be because he didn’t want to believe otherwise, but he hadn’t exactly said what he was expecting this long distance relationship to be like, and with the way that he was looking now Erwin developed a small fear that he might change his mind about everything — at least until Levi sighed again and bent to give his head a quick kiss, opening his mouth after he did so to speak and reassure him as soon as he had started to worry. 

“Yeah.” He said then, as his eyes flashed brightly. “That doesn’t sound bad, as long as I get to talk to you and see you sometimes even if it’s over a shitty computer. I guess I can deal with just my hand for a while when I get horny, too. I mean, that’s what I did before I fucking met you anyway.”

Laughing loudly at that, Erwin watched the smile threaten to break out on Levi’s lips too, and as such, could not help but lower his eyelids and fix him with a heated, but playful, look. 

“We can use Skype for that too, you know.” He murmured, having half a mind to pull Levi back into his lap and render his search for his shorts to be a waste of time. 

Instead of that, though, because Levi had started to ask him what he wanted to do that night, he settled for reaching around to squeeze his ass, laughing again when Levi snorted and teasingly gave him a light slap on the shoulder before pushing him backward.

“I knew you were gonna fucking say that.” He said too, reaching forward to purposely mess up his hair, too, while Erwin continued to chuckle. Biting his lip, Levi stopped for a moment after that, though, and eyed him with interest, very obviously and purposefully giving him a once over while he crossed his arms and raised a coy brow. “...but it doesn’t sound like a bad idea. Seeing your dick over Skype is better than not seeing it at all. Until then, though, I still have the real thing to play around with as much as I want, right?”

“That’s right, Levi. But really, if it’s alright with you, I think we can figure this out later. I want to enjoy the time we have left, and to make sure you have fun. And I think after what happened today, I’d like to celebrate.”

“Celebrate?”

“Yes. Remember Mike, my friend at the bait shop?”

“Yeah.”

“Well, he finally brought over the beers he owed me earlier. He said there’s going to be a beach party tonight, and I thought it might be fun to go to. If you want, of course.”

“A beach party?”

Nodding, Erwin smiled hopefully up at Levi and reached out to take his hands. Although he knew that he would enjoy it, of course, because he’d been to many of these things before, he was still not quite sure if it would be Levi’s cup of tea. Most of what they’d done so far had been on their own and not in a crowded environment, and also...well, Erwin knew how much Levi disliked the sand. He wasn’t sure how he’d feel about spending their night walking around in it and even possibly sitting down, but surprisingly, he only took a second’s pause to think about it before he nodded and said yes. 

“Okay.” He said, shrugging, too, before he lifted a hand to fix the damage to Erwin’s hair that he’d done earlier. “As long as there’s beer there, I mean.”

“Oh, there will be plenty of beer there. I can guarantee that.” Erwin replied, laughing and feeling pleased as he watched Levi walk back across the room to presumably go find a new shirt. 

Unable to help it despite the fact that the question of their evening was settled and they’d be leaving soon, he paused for a moment, opening his mouth to ask one last thing that he’d been wondering about since before they’d had their talk earlier.

“Levi?” He murmured, standing up and following him to where a folded, white button-up shirt had apparently caught Levi’s eye from where it sat on top of his dresser. He wasn’t contemplating whether to wear that, was he? Erwin was suddenly dying to know because the thought made his mouth go dry, but before he could ask, he continued with something else he wanted to know even more instead: “What about my surprise?”

“Oh, that?” Levi replied, unsurprisingly sounding indifferent — even as he leaned back against Erwin’s chest when Erwin shifted to wrap his arms around him — despite the fact that he had, for a few moment _ at least _ until things had changed abruptly, been ready to ‘show him’ whatever it was earlier. “You missed your chance for that, at least for now. I guess I’ll show you later tonight, though.  _ If  _ you fucking behave.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> as always, thank you guys for reading <3


	14. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shit, Levi thought then. Was he about to meet a bunch of Erwin’s friends? He had mentioned that Mike, the surfer dude at the bait shop, was the one who’d told him about this, but Levi hadn’t really thought too much about who they’d actually be partying with. Needless to say, because of that, the thought briefly made him feel a bit nervous even though he didn’t necessarily mind, but nothing could have made him relax faster or cause his mood to soar more than the way that Erwin proudly began to introduce him to everyone as his boyfriend.

Holding onto Erwin’s hand, Levi walked beside him as they both made their way to Garrison Beach about an hour later, dressed in his sunglasses, running shorts, and one of Erwin’s large, white button-down shirts. He’d rolled the sleeves up past his elbows and knotted it in the front so that it wouldn’t just look like he was wearing a dress, trying to make it look more casual, too, by leaving the top few buttons undone so that it hung even looser than it normally would around his shoulders. 

For a brief second, he’d glimpsed himself in a mirror and thought he didn’t looked  _ that  _ ridiculous or anything, but in truth did not actually give that much of a shit, as really, all he’d wanted to do was wear Erwin’s shirt to the party. He liked the thought of it and he liked that  _ Erwin  _ liked it too — something that was obvious by the way that he looked at Levi like he wanted to bend him over the nearest flat surface once he’d started putting it on. Of course, that could just be from Levi’s fucking teasing about his ‘surprise,’ too, but doubted that was all, as he had to bite back a smile when he sensed Erwin sneaking peeks at him even now while they walked.

Erwin, too, had dressed casually, Levi thought. In fact, he was even more so — which didn’t fucking surprise him when during their first several encounters Erwin had never worn a shirt — and had only thrown on a pair of light blue swim trunks ‘just in case’ he ‘decided to go for a swim’ before it got dark, and a white, short-sleeved button down, one that he wore completely open so that Levi was blessed with a constant, full view of his gorgeous torso. Obviously, he wasn’t complaining about that, but he could not help teasing Erwin on their way there anyway. 

“You wouldn’t last one minute in the city.” He joked, letting go of Erwin’s hand so that he could wrap an arm around the back of his waist and walk with him that way. Leaning closer against his side when he felt Erwin’s fingers on his shoulder, he sensed his smile, too, because of his words, even if he couldn’t see it right there above him. “Especially in the winter.”

“Why is that?”

“Well, for one fucking thing, you actually have to wear a shirt.”

Playfully, Erwin pouted down in Levi’s direction. “I’m wearing a shirt now.”

“Barely.” Levi replied, scoffing. Together, they turned off the sidewalk they’d been walking on and stepped onto the entrance to the beach so that they could leave their shoes. From there, Erwin had said, it would still be about a 15 minute walk to where the party was, but this way they could stroll down the shore and watch the sun begin to go down. “You’d freeze your goddamn tits off. There’s snow, and ice and shit.”

“It’s snowed here before in my lifetime. Once or twice.”

“How much?”

“...less than an inch.”

Giving Erwin a look that suggested he’d just proven Levi’s point, Levi felt fond while he watched him laugh and then followed him out onto the sand. Immediately beginning to drag behind — Erwin’s stride was already much longer than his, of course, and he moved with ease on the beach while Levi became even slower — he grabbed onto the open edge of Erwin’s shirt so that he wouldn’t get too far ahead, but of course, Erwin was already stopping so that he could take his hand again, smiling before he lead him closer to the water where it would be easier for them both to walk. 

The sand was harder there, Levi knew, and didn’t stick to his feet as much — especially when the waves washed over them and swept it all off almost right away. The surf was gentle that evening, Levi noticed, calm and relatively clear enough so that he wasn’t unnerved when Erwin steered them closer to look at seashells and the water stayed over his ankles, although he hesitated to go any further when Erwin spotted some bigger ones about a yard deeper out. Actually backing up a step or two now that Erwin was not right beside him, Levi bit his lip and watched him wade until he was submerged up to his knees, finding, then, that he did want to join him even if it might mean making himself a little uncomfortable. 

Erwin wasn’t that far out,  _ right _ ? Could sharks — at least the kind that were big enough to eat you — even swim in water that shallow? Levi didn’t think so, and the ocean seemed to be clear enough so that he could watch where he was stepping and see if anything else tried to come up and attack him. Still, he hesitated for a few more moments before moving, only doing so in the end because he had been starting to think that his apprehension was fucking stupid and proving to be more inconvenient than anything else. After all, he thought, it wasn’t that he just  _ disliked  _ swimming or getting wet in general, because he didn’t.

On the contrary, he really enjoyed that shit in Uri’s pool, but as he’d explained to Erwin several times, the ocean was fucking different. It was big and deep and there were weirdass things in it that Levi did not like, and as such, he’d thought — up until he’d started to get to know Erwin better, anyway — that he’d be fine spending the summer not taking a dip into it at all. Now, though, he found himself feeling like it might be fun because of how enjoyable Erwin always made it seem, and...well, he just wanted to be able to do everything he possibly could with Erwin together anyway.

Keeping that in mind, Levi grit his teeth and took a breath and all but surged forward into the water, wading so quickly and suddenly that his splashing caught Erwin — who had been bending over to pick up a shell — by surprise. He stood up suddenly, in fact, and looked over at Levi with his eyebrows raised, the taken aback expression remaining on his face for even a second or two longer than that like he couldn’t believe he was actually watching Levi follow him into the ocean. Then, though,  _ then  _ he smiled widely and stepped forward and reached out for Levi’s hand, helping him to wade through while Levi averted his eyes down to make sure he wasn’t stepping onto any eels.

“Careful.” Erwin murmured over the sound of the surf, an obvious amusement in his voice probably because of how Levi had practically tripped over himself in an effort to grab onto his palm, moving, next, to all but glue himself against Erwin’s side before he went still and tried to get his bearings. “Are you alright?”

“Uh...yeah. I mean—

“There’s nothing here except shells. See?”

Levi did see. In fact, it was one of the first things he’d noticed, as his eyes had immediately latched onto the varying shapes that he’d glimpsed beneath the water to make sure that they weren’t fucking moving. Now, though, he saw some of the ones that Erwin had in his free hand as well, because he held it out to him for Levi to inspect, swallowing as he looked and tried to not think about the fact that he was up to his thighs in the fucking ocean. He was shorter than Erwin, of course, so it came up higher on him, but Erwin was warm and calm and close, keeping a firm hand behind Levi’s shoulders because of the swells that continued to pass them by. 

Out there, Levi thought, he could feel their pull and the sand was squishy and soft underneath his feet, shifting far more easily than it had anywhere else along the beach. Of course, Levi had been in the ocean before in his life, but it was long enough ago so that none of this was really familiar to him — at least not like it was to Erwin, who might as well have been a fish himself for how much he always seemed at home there. Still, though, he stayed conscious of the fact that Levi was not, noticeably keeping an eye out for any large waves or anything else that might startle him, and somehow making him feel secure enough so that they were able to stay out there for at least ten minutes looking for the best shells that they could find. 

“Do you think your mother will like this one?” Erwin said once they were done and had returned to shore, showing Levi a shiny, relatively undamaged colorful conch shell that they’d found half buried under the water that was about the size of his palm.

It was much nicer and bigger than the others, Levi thought, and although he knew Erwin was sweetly asking him because Kuchel collected them — Erwin, on the other hand, sold the best ones he could find to tourist stands for change — and they’d had a whole conversation about it, he was suddenly pretty sure he’d rather keep  _ that  _ shell for himself. 

“Maybe.” He murmured, taking it from Erwin’s hands to hold in his own, turning it over and over in his fingers a few times before he recalled something and pressed it up to his ear. 

Sure enough, just as he’d been told as a boy, he heard a strange rushing noise that sounded like the ocean. Obviously, he was aware that it wasn’t, but strangely enough, it made his heart flutter in his chest, as he knew he’d like having something to remind him of this day, something real and beautiful and special like this — a souvenir, but one that he and Erwin had picked up together — that was just like what he had found in Erwin, and that he could take home with him when he finally had to fucking...well,  _ leave _ .

Flushing a bit, then, partly because he was being cheesy but partly because of the renewed, strong rush of emotion he felt when he remembered all the amazing things that Erwin had said to him earlier, Levi carefully put the shell in his pocket, knowing that he would be able to listen to it and think of him as he tugged Erwin down for a quick kiss. “I think I’ll keep it for myself, though.”

“Alright.” Erwin replied simply, smiling at Levi, however, in a way that was so warm and soft and fond that it was almost as if he’d guessed exactly what Levi was actually thinking. 

He probably fucking had, Levi thought, but whatever. He didn’t care, obviously, and instead just closed his eyes to embrace him again so that they could share a few more kisses in front of the surf, eventually parting because he supposed they still had to get to the party. That being said, the rest of their walk was leisurely enough so that they arrived just as the sun had finally set, coming upon a crowd of people that Levi had glimpsed growing larger in the distance for the past few minutes. 

They were mingling all around, he saw, on an area of beach that seemed to be fenced off and that rested behind a sizeable looking bar that was opposite the ocean — one with a large sign over it’s porch that had ‘GARRISON BAR, BEACH, AND OYSTER HOUSE’ completely spelled out in light bulbs. Apparently, Levi learned from Erwin, an older man named Dot Pixis owned the place and often allowed parties to be thrown there for the locals, which meant, Levi suddenly realized, that a lot of the people he was about to see there Erwin would probably know.

_ Shit _ , he thought then. Was he about to meet a bunch of Erwin’s friends? He  _ had  _ mentioned that Mike, the surfer dude at the bait shop, was the one who’d told him about it, but Levi hadn’t really thought too much about who they’d actually be partying with. Needless to say, because of that, the thought briefly made him feel a bit nervous even though he didn’t necessarily mind, but nothing could have made him relax faster or cause his mood to soar more than the way that Erwin proudly began to introduce him to everyone as his  _ boyfriend _ .

Mike was the first person he met, Levi thought, for real this time instead of just as a customer, and although he raised an eyebrow at Erwin strangely upon his introduction, he shook Levi’s hand and welcomed him after Erwin gave him a resolute nod in response to his peculiar look. What the hell was that about? Levi wasn’t sure, but whatever. He’d ask later, as now he was too busy being accosted by a loud, eccentric person named Hange Zoe, along with friends Moblit, Nanaba, Lynne, and Gelgar.

As such, Levi was quickly given a double shot of tequila, a beer, and a basket of oysters from an ice chest in that order, a small snack, apparently, until the massive cuts of ribs that were being prepared nearby were finished cooking. Levi could see the smoke coming from the devices that they were held in closer towards the bar, and after some of it wafted over on the breeze he felt his mouth water at how appetizing it all fucking smelled. He was hungry, but still, he shared his oysters with Erwin after he'd been given his gift of booze too and they snagged another open picnic table, sitting side by side on one end and talking for a few moments while they ate. 

“Oysters are an aphrodisiac, you know.” Erwin murmured beside him, apparently unable to resist uttering  _ that _ tidbit of information as soon as Levi had put one in his mouth and started to chew — something that Levi did not find surprising in the least. 

“That's bullshit.” He replied, experiencing a warm flutter in his belly all the same because of the low tone of voice Erwin had spoken in, as well as the way that he leaned over to press his lips to his temple, lingering there and wrapping an arm around his waist and clearly not afraid to show affection to him in public or in front of his friends — something that made Levi feel special and pleased rather than anything else.  “At least I hope so, because otherwise we aren’t going to be at this fucking party for very long.”

Erwin laughed so loudly at that Levi  _ swore  _ it drowned out the music. Two tables down, Hange looked over in their direction at the sound of it, but then smiled, and even Levi struggled to hold one back because of how happy Erwin sounded. Feeling the same, as well as pleasantly warm and a bit tingly because of the tequila — he wasn't close to being drunk, or even buzzed, but it still had the smallest effect — he leaned into Erwin’s side and fed him an oyster, snorting at the ridiculous, playful way he suggestively waggled his eyebrows at him while he chewed. 

“Stop that shit. You know you’re getting laid no matter what I eat, right?” Levi murmured with a shake of his head, uttering a question which earned him more laughter from Erwin and another quick kiss. “Unless they make me sick, and I end up shitting myself all night.”

“Well, let’s hope that doesn’t happen.” Erwin replied, still chuckling even as Levi could not help but do the same at his own joke.

“Yeah.” He agreed too, because, of course, he  _ certainly  _ did not want anything like that to actually happen either. 

He’d gotten food poisoning from shellfish before and it had been a fucking nightmare, but these oysters were fresh and tasty and they ate about 5 more apiece, remaining at their table just chatting and drinking and people watching until the rest of the food was finally actually ready. For obvious reasons, it was first come first serve because there was only so much, but they’d gotten there relatively early and ended up with one big, heaping plate that they shared, eating the ribs with their fingers again until they were full and ready for another round of tequila — ‘ready’ being a relative term, because Mike descended upon their table with the fucking bottle before they could even say anything, pouring them another shot and staying to chat this time along with Nanaba, Hange and Moblit. 

Needless to say, with the next hour or so continuing like that, it did not come as a surprise to Levi that he ended up well and truly drunk, flushed and reeling and excitable from the alcohol as well as the fun atmosphere of the party. By then, now that it was nearing 11:00 PM, the gathering had become a lot more lively than it was when they’d first gotten there, with huge crowds of people mingling in the sand, drinking and talking and dancing over the loud, pulsating music that came from the nearby bar. Overall, the atmosphere was carefree, lighthearted, and friendly, and at some point they ended up with a joint in their hands — although Levi could not have figured out for the life of him where it had come from — that they both took turns hitting for a few minutes, only passing it along once they were done before they found themselves wrapped up in a match of horseshoes against both Hange and Moblit.

One game led to two and then two led to three, and somehow, despite his drunken high —  and Erwin’s, because he was not unaffected by the tequila either, nor the weed — Levi managed to help them prevail in what had become a pretty fucking intense final few throws, so much so that when he threw the winning one, Erwin roared, picked him up from behind, and spun him around until Levi fell out of his arms laughing and kicking up sand and gasping for breath from where he’d been squeezed.

“You idiot.” He breathed — teasingly, of course — as he failed to hold back a dazed sort of smile, stumbling backward a few steps from the momentum but reaching out for Erwin when he immediately moved to follow him. 

Catching Levi, he wrapped him right back up in his arms all over again, laughing until Levi grabbed onto his face and they kissed in a happy, adrenalized sort of way, lingering and locking lips like that several more times until Hange yelled at them to get a room and Levi looked around Erwin to find them running off with Moblit carried on their back towards the alcohol bar on the other side of the beach. The sight was amusing enough for him to just stare for a moment and then snort, finally ending up glancing back at Erwin after neither one of them bothered to say anything in response. 

Instead of that, they seemed to just mutually decide to almost heed Hange’s words rather than anything else, walking off hand in hand to ‘get a room’ — or at least as much as they could while out in the open. Not quite ready to leave the party just yet but wanting to sit down, they found another empty picnic table that was farther away from the center of everything and settled in, ending up wrapped around each other there, too, after Erwin sat with his back to the wood and Levi climbed over him so that he could comfortably sit sideways right in his lap. 

Like that, they just talked quietly and watched people again, finding that this far away from things they remained unbothered — especially after the large bonfire that had been set up in the center of the beach was finally lit, the flames from that quickly flaring up and attracting most of the other party guests while  _ they  _ did not even bother to move, remaining content to stay cuddled up and just observe everything that was happening from a distance. By then, some of Levi’s intoxication had worn off a bit, giving way to a calmer, languid sort of feeling that caused his limbs to feel heavy and his head to end up resting atop Erwin’s shoulder, gradually growing quiet as Erwin hugged him closer and they continued to watch the bonfire burn. 

It’s flames cast shadows over them in their spot, and although Levi — perhaps feeling more content than he ever might have been in that moment — was happy to just soak in Erwin’s warmth and the rise and fall of his chest behind him, he eventually did speak up again, right after he caught sight of Mike roasting a hot dog and he remembered something from earlier. 

“Hey.” He murmured, shifting a bit in Erwin’s arms to tilt his head up at him. 

“Hm?” Erwin hummed from above him in response, sounding sleepy himself even as he turned his neck to give Levi a small kiss at the top of his hair.

“When we got here and I met your friends, Mike looked at you weird. What the hell was that shit about?”

“Ah...that? It was nothing. We’d been talking earlier today, and I think he was just surprised to hear me introduce you as my boyfriend. I hadn’t mentioned that to him before, because...well, you weren’t, not at the time.”

“Oh. Yeah. But I am now.”

“Yes. You are now.”

Shifting from where he’d basically been reclining against Erwin’s chest, Levi sat up so that he could look him in the eye, catching sight of his happy smile immediately and shifting to press a light kiss to his cheek.

“He was a bit worried about me, I think.” Erwin continued quietly, keeping his arms wrapped around Levi while he began to idly play with Erwin’s hair, listening to him and watching his lips move even though his words had made him raise an eyebrow. “Because he could tell how much I like you, and he knew you weren’t from here. He thought I might get hurt, but that isn’t the case, and he was just asking me if things were alright earlier. Obviously they are, and none of that matters now anyway.”

Briefly, Levi’s thoughts threatened to wander into something more serious at that, at the suggestion that what they had been doing was wrong, somehow, in the eyes of Erwin’s friend Mike. Of course, he supposed he understood his concern — and knew that it could have resulted in either of them getting hurt, as that was what he’d been worried about for himself, too — but then he realized that Erwin was right: it didn’t matter. No, anything like that was a moot point because they’d talked about it and both wanted to pursue a relationship, to try and establish something that would hopefully overcome the bounds of distance between them after Levi left the island. 

“Yeah.” Levi murmured with that in mind, after he’d paused for a moment or two to think. While he’d done so, Erwin had shifted his arms a bit so that he now held onto Levi’s hip with one hand, rubbing at his back with the other as if he could sense what he had been thinking. “It doesn’t. Because I’m your boyfriend now, right?”

Repeating Erwin’s words from earlier, Levi leaned closer so that he could press his forehead right up against the side of Erwin’s, settling both his arms around his neck loosely while he peered at Erwin and watched him smile again. With the way that he was seated in Erwin’s lap at the picnic table, his legs dangled off the edge of the bench above the sand, and although the party continued to revel around them, at that point, Erwin was really the only thing that Levi was actually aware of. Erwin, he thought, and his teasing, wandering fingers, which had, by then, made their way up under the makeshift hemline of Levi’s knotted shirt to caress at his bare skin. 

“That’s right.” He murmured too, with something very bright and excited dancing behind his blue eyes. “You’re my boyfriend, Levi.” 

At that, Levi — who had been feeling the urge to kiss Erwin once more for the past few minutes or so — again felt happy and content and satisfied, and responded by pulling away just enough so that he could press their lips together, immediately closing his eyes and opening his mouth while Erwin did the same. Clearly, he’d been expecting it, and as such, although Levi had kissed him rather lightly, it did not necessarily stay that way, and this time, unlike when they’d embraced after the last horseshoe game, they did not stop, ending up making out and with their hands all over each other’s bare skin despite the fact that they were in public. 

To be fair, Levi was wearing tiny shorts and Erwin had his shirt unbuttoned so it wasn’t like they had to take any clothes off to find it, but they were still on the outskirts of a party, and even if it was dark and they’d found a quiet corner, Levi knew they weren’t hidden or invisible to anyone who might happen look in their direction. Regardless, though, he did not actually fucking care, as he was under the influence of alcohol and too smitten, too enraptured, really, to be embarrassed or ashamed about openly making out with Erwin in front of a crowd a people.

Besides, he was sure of, they weren’t the only ones doing that kind of shit, as he’d already seen gross PDA from other couples several times that night, and for that reason, he didn’t worry about it, and instead just continued to leisurely kiss Erwin, losing himself to the embrace, to the softness of his lips and the warmth of his mouth and the slick slide of his tongue, allowing a hand to roam over his bare chest while he kept his other arm wrapped around Erwin’s neck. Beneath him, Erwin rubbed at his back — underneath his shirt now — and squeezed at his thigh, holding him tightly while they breathed the same air and only paid attention to each other. 

As nice as it was, though, with the sand beneath them and the sound of the surf heard somewhere over the music and voices, eventually they did stop, because Levi could feel the hard outline of Erwin’s cock pressing up against his ass, and the want for more was starting to become too much to ignore. How long had it been by then, though? 15 minutes? 20? Levi wasn’t sure and only knew that his lips were swollen and he felt a bit dazed when he pulled away and looked around, noticing that by then, the party seemed to have broken up a lot as if the bonfire had signaled the end of it. 

Of course, that had been reduced to nothing but smoldering embers at that point, but although they both saw Erwin’s friends still standing around the burned pile of wood, they snuck away without saying goodbye, as their minds were basically fixed on one thing and they both seemed to silently agree that they didn’t want to get caught up in too long of a conversation. Levi would see them again surely, he thought, before he left, but either way, his focus was on Erwin, and together, hand in hand, they retreated from the party and began to trace their footsteps backward along the beach from which they’d come.


	15. Chapter 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Ready for your surprise?” Levi murmured in the darkness, immediately causing Erwin’s eyes to go lidded and his mouth to go dry because yes, of course he was ready for the surprise. 
> 
> “Yes.” He said out loud, swallowing as Levi bit his lip and then stood on his toes to teasingly kiss at the corner of his mouth. He moved to grasp Erwin’s neck with one palm while he did so, and almost instinctually by then, because of his height, Erwin grabbed him around the waist in an effort to make sure that he stayed balanced. “I’ve been thinking about it all day.”

At 1:00 AM, the marina where Erwin lived was a completely different place from how it had been 12 hours ago. Quiet, dark, and still, with only the sounds of the water to be heard and the boats bobbing up and down on top of it to be seen, it was so empty that by the time he and Levi returned they were the only ones outside on the docks. Gone were the fishermen, of course, as well as the tourists and the business owners like Mike, leaving only the residents — all of which had apparently deemed it ‘lights out’ on their floating homes hours ago.

Obviously, Erwin was the exception to that, but because the place was so silent and peaceful he almost felt like he was sneaking around with Levi as they navigated the docks towards where his houseboat was tied off, hurriedly walking hand in hand together while they spoke in hushed voices and tried to stifle the occasional bout of laughter. Even so, even though they tried to be quiet, the sound of their shoes scuffing along the wood and the creaking of the boards beneath them seemed incredibly loud in the darkness, but truth be told, to borrow language from Levi, Erwin did not give a flying, shitty rat’s ass about how noisy they were being at all. 

No, at that point, his only concern was getting home as soon as possible so that he properly take Levi into his arms and undress him again, because although the walk back had been leisurely and enjoyable enough, he  _ swore  _ he’d been half hard for him ever since they’d left the party. The way that he’d sat in his lap and unabashedly kissed him in front of  _ everyone  _ had done that, Erwin knew — he had to admit, he’d been pleasantly surprised at his actions all that night because of how he’d made him install curtains on his boat — but despite the fact that  _ he  _ had no shame about such things, he was ready to be alone with Levi so that they could do more than just make out.

That being said, he hoped Levi would be comfortable in his living space. He hoped he would be able to relax and feel like they had the amount of privacy he wanted, as although Erwin knew they’d already fooled around earlier, that hadn’t been planned and they’d both been too overcome with passion  _ and  _ alcohol, among other things, to think about anything else. This time, Erwin suspected that Levi wouldn’t forget where he was and how close they were to other people — even if the few actual neighbors he had were all asleep on their boats — and he’d worked hard that day to make sure that everything would be clean and agreeable for him. 

Thankfully, though, Levi did not seem worried about anything like that in the least, as he too was apparently just eager to pick up from where they’d left off on the beach. That being said, he surprised Erwin again by turning to face him after they’d both finally reached his boat and hopped onto the deck, stopping him before he could even step forward by placing his hands on his chest and looking up at him with a sly, noticeably sultry, look.

“Ready for your surprise?” He murmured in the darkness, immediately causing Erwin’s eyes to go lidded and his mouth to go dry because  _ yes _ , of  _ course  _ he was ready for the surprise. 

“Yes.” He said out loud, swallowing as Levi bit his lip and then stood on his toes to teasingly kiss at the corner of his mouth. He moved to grasp Erwin’s neck with one palm while he did so, and almost instinctually by then, because of his height, Erwin grabbed him around the waist in an effort to make sure that he stayed balanced. “I’ve been thinking about it all day.” 

It was true; he  _ had  _ been thinking about Levi’s ‘surprise’ all day — or at least, he had since Levi had first mentioned it to him that afternoon. What could it be? His guess was on some kind of toy, or special underwear like a jock strap or...panties. Either would kill him, Erwin was quite certain of, and he could already imagine what his tombstone might read. ‘Here lies Erwin Smith,’ he mused, still slightly intoxicated, ‘died from exposure to his boyfriend’s ass in lace.’ An unfortunate and untimely death it might be, of course — he was  _ only  _ 24 years old — but a valiant and noble one for sure. 

“Yeah? Me too.” Levi continued, oblivious to Erwin’s ridiculous thoughts. Sliding his palm along his shoulder, now, he pushed his shirt off of it and followed the trail his fingers were blazing with his mouth, kissing at his neck and collarbone and apparently having no qualms about doing it on what was basically his front porch either. “Know what else I’ve been thinking about?”

“What’s that?” Erwin murmured in response, honestly feeling tempted to just grab Levi and throw him over his shoulder like some sort of caveman, as he was suddenly so impatient to get inside that he could almost barely stand it. 

It was uncharacteristic for him, for sure, but Levi had learned very quickly how to push his buttons to get him riled up. He was no doubt doing it on purpose now, but Erwin couldn’t be bothered about it — not when he knew it would just lead to more fun anyway. That being said, he couldn’t stop himself from taking a step forward to crowd Levi into taking one back, settling for that instead of picking him up in the hopes that he would get the point and head to the nearby doorway.

Naturally, he did the opposite, and decided that he’d rather wind his arm tighter around Erwin’s neck and  _ bite  _ down sharply at the crook of it. 

“Your big cock.” He practically purred then, greedily palming at Erwin’s chest with his free hand while Erwin — fighting not to groan at the spike in blood pressure Levi’s teeth had just caused — again gently pushed him a step backwards. “And your hands on my ass.”

“Like this?” Erwin replied immediately, reaching around since that’s what Levi apparently wanted so that he could grab two plump handfuls and squeeze. 

“Yeah.” Came Levi’s response, uttered so breathlessly that it almost sounded like a moan.  _ God, _ Erwin thought, while Levi tugged at his shirt, was he trying to make him come in his swim shorts? It had been a long time since he’d been young and sensitive enough to do something like that, but he swore if Levi didn’t stop then it was going to happen, that some part of Levi was going to brush within a foot of his cock and he’d end up doubling over like he was some sort of teenaged boy. What would he do then? How would he live it down? If he— “Fuck, Erwin, I’m so horny. Come on.”

At that, whatever Erwin had been thinking about immediately left his mind, as it was nowhere near as important as doing exactly what Levi had just said now that he finally had the chance — although he had to admit, he wanted to scoff at how Levi had just begged him as if  _ he  _ hadn’t been the one slowing him down in the first place. It was amusing, and the smile on Levi’s lips when Erwin kissed him suggested that he’d certainly been enjoying all of this too, at least until Erwin took advantage of Levi throwing his other arm around his neck and surrendering himself to back him right up against the wall. 

Like the first night they’d slept together, they took the time to make out hungrily beside the door, although now, Erwin had to be the one to eventually unlock it and let them inside instead of Levi. When he did so, they managed to slip into Erwin’s living space and make their way to his separate bedroom area without tripping over anything, but that was probably because Levi extricated himself from Erwin’s arms so that he could stop and unzip his nearby backpack. The surprise was in there, Erwin knew, but despite the fact that he craned his neck in an attempt to see, Levi’s hands were quick and deft and all he’d seen was him shove something in his pocket before he was on him again, eagerly pushing him into the bedroom while somehow at the same time ridding himself of his shirt.

Seconds later, Erwin landed on his back on top of the mattress and could barely situate himself among the pillows before Levi was straddling him, all but shoving his shoulders down so Erwin was lying flat when he kissed him and then batting his hands away playfully, pulling away long enough to click his tongue after Erwin slyly attempted to sneak his fingers inside of Levi’s pocket. Burning up with curiosity over what he was hiding by then — almost as much as he was with lust — Erwin nevertheless smiled and went more pliant after that, as he could tell by how rough and aggressive Levi was being with him that it was apparently what he wanted. 

Still, what did he have planned? It was hard for Erwin not to counter everything Levi was doing by throwing him onto his stomach, pinning him down, and eventually fucking him so hard he couldn’t do anything but take it when that was what his instincts were telling him, but even though he couldn’t know what Levi was thinking, something told him to wait. Something told him to relax and be patient because it might not be what he wanted right then, and sure enough, after he just lied back and kissed Levi for a while — more leisurely now, and slow, but still sensual enough to make his head spin — he was rewarded for his submission by finally being allowed to discover what the surprise was. 

“Go ahead.” Levi told him, grabbing Erwin’s hand himself this time and placing it down right over his pocket. 

He moved his head, lazily mouthing at Erwin’s neck while he lifted it so that he could watch what he was doing, eyeing where his own fingers had now disappeared inside of Levi’s shorts and immediately felt something hard. It was cool too, he thought, and smooth. Plastic? Yes, it was a small bottle, and when he pulled it out he immediately saw the label through the dim lighting and realized that it was massage oil — although not just any massage oil, of course, but the kind meant for the bedroom with warming properties and...a vanilla flavor? Did that mean it was edible? Where all, exactly, could they put it?

Before Erwin could ask — he wasn’t sure he’d actually be able to speak anyway, as his mouth had gone dry at the thought of  _ all  _ the potential possibilities that came with this oil — Levi spoke up, having been kissing along Erwin’s jawline while he continued to stare so that he could murmur something into his ear. 

“Can I use it on you?” He said, sounding gentle and earnest and causing Erwin to turn his head to look at him. 

“Me?” He breathed in response, raising an eyebrow while Levi bit his lip and nodded. 

“Yeah. I wanna take care of you tonight. I’m pretty good at it, you know. ” 

Of that, Erwin had no doubt. Levi was studying to be a physical therapist, he knew, and he felt like it would make sense for him to know how to work with muscles. Obviously, he did not have a problem with getting a massage either, but his thoughts always tended to focus on how to pleasure Levi first. It made him happy to do so, and he’d already started imagining himself making Levi purr like a cat by rubbing the oil all over his body. However, the opposite did not turn him on any less, which was good, because he had a feeling that Levi’s words about ‘taking care of him’ entailed other things that meant he would not be the one in charge tonight one way or the other.

Having no problem with anything he wanted to do either way, though — Erwin was just happy to be with Levi right then — Erwin just smiled, thinking that if Levi wanted to treat him...well, then of course he was not going to protest, not when it was rather sweet and romantic of him, he thought, and made Erwin’s insides flutter rather pleasantly to think about. 

“Alright.” He said with that thought, allowing Levi to take the bottle of oil away from him and out of his hands.

At his urging, he sat up and was kissed thoroughly while Levi worked him out of his shirt and then unfastened his swim trunks, taking the time to reach in and stroke him just long enough for Erwin to become breathless before he pulled away. Helping to ease him out of the shorts then, Levi did the same with his own and pressed their lips together one last time, motioning for Erwin  to roll over onto his stomach next before he quickly settled himself back on top of his waist again while Erwin grabbed a pillow for his head, shoved his forearms under it, and shifted a bit to get comfortable. Closing his eyes, he remained keenly aware of what Levi was doing behind him even if he couldn’t see him, relying mostly on his sense of touch rather than anything else because he wasn’t really making that much noise, either. 

In fact, all that Erwin really heard before he felt a few wet drops of oil hit his skin was Levi popping open the bottle, allowing whatever he apparently needed to escape in a thin line that he carefully directed down along the dip of Erwin’s spine. Thankfully, the liquid was warm from having been tucked into Levi’s pocket so it didn’t shock him, but even so, the sort of light, tickling sensation it caused was enough to make him shiver and get goosebumps — at least until Levi suddenly put his hands on him, anyway, and lightly rubbed at his shoulders in a way that had Erwin immediately going still, his muscles already untensing a bit as he exhaled a small, blissful sigh into the pillow beneath him. 

It was because of how nice and soothing Levi’s touch felt to him right off the bat, he thought, because of how soft and warm and slick and  _ wet  _ his palms were, the both of them having apparently been coated in the oil too so that they glided slick and smooth over Erwin’s previously dry skin. Taking the time to dip his fingers into the droplets of the stuff that he’d left along his spine, Levi essentially worked to lather him up before he did anything else, slowly, gently, and methodically spreading the oil out and rubbing at him from the very top of his neck down to the bottom of his waist. Additionally, he palmed at Erwin’s sides and even slid his hands down along his arms and over both his biceps as if he was determined to not miss a single spot, leaning over far enough while he did so to press a few light kisses into the curve of his neck. 

Again, Erwin almost shivered from the feel of Levi’s lips brushing over his skin there, but again, before he could, he was distracted by the fact that the massage seemed to have  _ really  _ begun, because although Levi’s touch had been rather tender while he’d been essentially oiling him up, now, as he planted his palms over his shoulders again, he began rubbing at him more firmly, kneading his muscles and pressing his thumbs into his skin and squeezing with just the right amount of pressure to gradually ease away all of his tightly wound tension. 

Indeed, despite the fact that Erwin had not necessarily thought that he needed a massage, apparently he was more stressed than he’d even known, because it did not take long before he found himself essentially melting underneath Levi’s talented hands — hands that soon had Erwin feeling like he’d been temporarily transported to some kind of heaven, as to say that Levi was ‘pretty good’ at this had to be some kind of grossly downplayed understatement. In fact, his fingers seemed to work magic, Erwin thought, although they were aided by the oil, which had filled the small room with a nice, spiced vanilla scent by then and caused most of Erwin’s back and arms to tingle with the pleasant warming effects that he remembered being mentioned on the bottle. 

Since Levi had started, it had spread slowly across Erwin’s skin in the wake of his hands, making him feel quite heated but in a pleasant way rather than anything feverish or irritating. It was probably meant to help his muscles loosen even more, he knew, but even if it was good, he suspected that Levi wouldn’t have needed the help, because it was the way that he touched him in the end that had him feeling like he was rapidly turning into jelly. He hadn’t even moved lower than his shoulders, in fact, before he had begun to transform into something boneless — although Levi  _ had  _ massaged his neck and shoulders into mush and was now busy working on his upper arms, making his way down towards his biceps while Erwin lay limp and relaxed underneath him.

He swore he  _ could  _ have gone to sleep, he thought then,  _ if _ it wasn’t for the persistent arousal that absolutely refused to go away, that  _ couldn’t  _ go away even if he’d wanted it to — he did not, for the record — because of how Levi’s touch, firm and sensual and prolonged, affected him below the belt in general. His hands on him would have set him on fire even without the wet, warming oil, he thought, but that was just making it worse, and it wasn’t like this was a normal massage to begin with, anyway. No, they were both naked and Levi was straddling him and the kisses he’d given his neck earlier had not exactly been a fluke, as Levi had not stopped peppering them along Erwin’s skin while he worked, leaning over far enough to add his mouth whenever he saw fit which  _ also  _ had the effect of causing his cock to brush up against the middle of Erwin’s waist lightly.

Levi was as hard as a rock, he could tell, but then again so was he, and he could not stop a low groan from sounding out in his throat when Levi shifted to lick at the back of his neck, his breath again causing goosebumps to rise up on his skin while he rubbed his hand over one of his biceps. 

“Is this what they taught you in your physical therapy classes?” Erwin could not help but tease then, aware of how his voice was muffled by the pillow even as he turned his head in an attempt to peer at Levi over his back. 

He couldn’t quite glimpse his face at first, he saw, because of how he was leaning over, but only a second or two passed before he shifted and his eyes appeared, bright and sparkling over the side of Erwin’s as he scoffed and then gently pressed his lips just over his jaw. 

“Yeah.” He murmured, basically nuzzling him with his nose while he moved a hand lower to start massaging at his upper side — just below his left shoulder blade, and just hard enough to cause Erwin’s eyes to flutter shut again before Levi gave his cheek another quick kiss. “Just like this. You like it?”

“Mmhm.” Erwin could only hum, smiling, of course, but almost immediately having been taken away again by Levi’s fingers, all ten of which seemed to know exactly where to press to make his muscles soften like melted butter. 

“Good.” Levi continued, disappearing from view again — Erwin wasn’t looking, but he felt him move farther away — so that he could mouth wetly along one shoulder. “If you’re lucky, maybe you’ll even get a happy ending.”

At that, Erwin could not help but snort, his smile growing wider because he obviously knew what Levi meant and he obviously knew that he was teasing him, although not to the extent where neither one of them would actually end up without being satisfied before the night was over. 

“I’m not sure that it’s possible for me to get any luckier than I already am.” He replied anyway, mumbling so lazily that he was surprised Levi could actually understand him. 

Perhaps he didn’t, Erwin thought, because his only response was to scoff again, although somehow he had the sense that Levi was biting his lip and adopting that expression he wore whenever Erwin said something sweet — the one that made him want to crush Levi to his chest and cover his blushing cheeks with kisses. Ignoring the urge this time, however, Erwin stayed still while Levi sat up and began to resume the massage in earnest, working his hands along the muscles of Erwin’s back beneath his shoulder blades and along his sides, continuing like that and going lower and lower until his palms were at his waist and Erwin was nothing more than a veritable puddle of goo. 

That’s what he felt like, at least, but even so, he was also a puddle of goo that had never been harder in it’s life, because  _ god _ , although Levi’s massage was romantic and intimate and calming...well, it must have been over twenty minutes since he’d started, and as if having a constant erection since then wasn’t enough, he knew he’d had one on and off from the moment that Levi had sat in his lap while they’d still been at the beach. He hadn’t been touched where it counted at any time after that, and by then, he positively ached for some relief, so much so that he hadn’t been able to stop himself from grinding his hips down into the bed a few times once Levi’s hands began to near his waist. 

Of course, by that point, Levi had moved from his position on top of him so that he could kneel between Erwin’s legs, and thankfully, although he rubbed at his lower back with one of his palms, he seemed to have become quite distracted by the swell of Erwin’s ass, which he pressed his lips to over and over again in an increasingly hungry manner. In fact, it did not take much longer — or a lot of squirming from Erwin — before he was clearly far more interested in that instead of continuing the massage, which was obviously fine with Erwin, who was quickly losing himself to the hot arousal he felt because of what Levi was doing to him. 

Mouthing wetly just under one of Erwin’s ass cheeks, Levi’s hands were on them as well as his thighs now, groping and squeezing roughly in contrast to how gentle and tender his touch had been before. Clearly, he was just as turned on by this as Erwin was, because he could hear Levi breathing heavily behind him, exhaling loudly through his nose as he eagerly sucked a mark at the top of Erwin’s thigh and let his thumb venture into the middle of his crack. He dug his fingers into the plump skin there and immediately made Erwin groan, a deep, needy sound leaving his throat this time as he struggled to keep himself calm. 

What he really wanted to do, he thought, was shove his ass into Levi’s face, but instead he remained still, fighting the pounding of his heart and the shortness of his own breath that came from the anticipation of what he  _ knew _ Levi was going to do. Sure enough, finally, after  _ he  _ ground out  _ Erwin’s  _ name in a desperate sounding voice himself, Levi spread his cheeks and ran the flat of his tongue over the sensitive pucker in between, lapping at him like that a few more times before he fixed his mouth more firmly onto him and began to lick at Erwin in earnest. 

Immediately, in response, Erwin made a breathy sound and shuddered in pleasure from the swell of it that came from his ass and traveled up his spine, the sensations from Levi’s skilled tongue causing him to gasp and grind himself against the mattress again as he continued. He was good at this, Erwin had learned, as good as he was at giving massages with his fingers, apparently, and always ate him out with an eagerness that clearly demonstrated he had no reservations about doing such a thing — not that Erwin did either, but...well, he had never been on the receiving end of this until Levi had learned that fact about two weeks ago and bent him over the edge of his bed. 

He’d made Erwin fall apart in record time then, he remembered,  _ really  _ fall apart until his thighs were trembling and he was dripping sweat and moaning uncontrollably because of how intensely  _ good  _ it had honestly, truly actually felt, and he was sure that this time would be no different, as he was already overheated and boneless as it was, and Levi did not hesitate to push his tongue inside of him so that he could lick and suck at him just past and around his rim. 

“Levi.” Erwin gasped again at that, biting down hard on his bottom lip so that he wouldn’t cry out when Levi suddenly teased at his balls with one hand. 

The sensation from both things was enough to make him want to push his knees into the bed and grind himself against Levi’s palm and his face at the same time, but Levi was pressing his mouth up to him about as hard as he could, moving his lips earnestly over Erwin’s entrance and slipping his wet, soft, hot tongue in and out of him, only pulling back occasionally to lap at him teasingly for a moment or two before veritably diving back in. 

The fingers of one hand dug into one ass cheek hard enough to leave bruises to hold him open, and the other had slipped underneath his raised hips to touch his cock — at least for a moment, anyway, until Levi suddenly let go, sucked two of his own digits inside his mouth, and then slid them inside of Erwin, immediately causing him to let out that loud moan he’d been holding back for the past several minutes. 

To be fair, a good deal of it was out of surprise because he hadn’t been expecting that — Levi definitely hadn’t done  _ that  _ before, he thought, at least not while licking at him — but he was so relaxed and loose from Levi’s mouth and the massage that there was no resistance and only pleasure, although Erwin clenched around Levi’s fingers so suddenly that it did seem to make him pause. 

“Okay?” Levi breathed, his voice sounding as ragged and hoarse and wrecked as Erwin’s surely was, which was a detail that he was not too far gone yet to appreciate. That being said, he did not have time to answer, really, before Levi had pressed his mouth to his ass again, carefully twisting his fingers a bit and licking around them so that Erwin gasped instead of speaking, shuddering, too, because of how the pleasure from Levi’s tongue continued to make his toes curl. “I need lube, Erwin. Real lube. Where the fuck—

“Under the bed.” Erwin all but groaned in response, huffing out something of a laugh as well at how Levi had apparently taken his reactions as a ‘yes’ to his question of whether or not he was alright, asking about the lube in a way that sounded as desperate and hurried as he already felt too. 

“Under the bed?” Levi muttered, though, clicking his tongue in disapproval as he removed his fingers and twisted to the side, leaning off the edge of the mattress enough to look underneath it for what he needed. 

Pushing himself up onto his elbows to look over his shoulder at him, Erwin first saw Levi and his hair hanging upside down, perched like that with one arm under the bed for a moment until he came back up with Erwin’s bottle of lube. After that, he saw Levi’s face, red and somehow almost completely wet from the nose down — it was saliva, he knew, all over the bottom of his cheeks and chin and jaw — with shining lips, lips that he wiped messily with the back of his hand before he glanced up to meet Erwin’s eye. 

There was something still heated and determined behind them, Erwin saw, that made him feel excited, that made him freeze and lower his head again and spread his legs, exhaling a sigh as Levi settled between them and he waited to see what he was going to do next. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> erwin gonna get it good


	16. Chapter 16

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Erwin was just so pliant and limp beneath him, Levi thought, that he could barely stand it, as it was really, really turning him on, so much so that he immediately imagined himself holding Erwin’s hips down so that he could let go and fuck him completely senseless.

Although Levi had intended on opening Erwin up as slow and leisurely as he had massaged his back, his impatience ended up getting the better of him mainly because...well, because he’d gone slow and leisurely this entire time in the first place. He’d been focusing on Erwin so far and had ignored his own arousal for the most part, he thought, but despite the fact that he’d been happy to do it at the time — Erwin had really, really been enjoying the massage and he’d been enjoying giving it to him — after he had Erwin roll over onto his back and realized what a mess he’d made of him so far he began to wonder how much longer he’d be able to wait. 

Obviously, he wasn’t going to shove his cock up Erwin’s ass without making sure that he was ready, though, but that was just the thing: Erwin seemed pretty fucking ready to him from the moment he’d first slipped his two fingers in. Of course, he’d been eating his ass then, licking at the tight ring of muscle and essentially massaging it with his tongue in an effort to loosen and relax it as much as the rest of Erwin was, and two fingers wasn’t  _ that  _ much to take, not really. Still, though, three slipped in just as easily — Levi could feel when his body accepted them, which happened almost right away — and Erwin only reacted as if he was in bliss, completely looking the part, too, and actually appearing to Levi like he was fucked out already. 

Whether it was the back massage that had caused it, the leftover effects from the illicit substances they’d partaken in still running through his system, Levi’s mouth, or a combination of all three, Levi thought, he didn’t know, but Erwin’s face was so ruddy that his blonde eyelashes stood out against his cheeks like gold, and his slack-jawed expression now reminded him of the way Erwin looked right after he’d just come. Of course, he hadn’t yet, Levi knew, which was a fact that was obviously demonstrated by his straining, leaking cock, the entire length of him almost just as red as his face now from where it stood out stiff and hard over the expanse of his lower belly. 

There was a mess of sticky, clear pre-come on his skin there — probably from where he’d been rutting around earlier on the bed — and although seeing it made Levi’s mouth water and long to lick it up, he also now wanted to replace the three fingers he had in Erwin’s ass with his cock. He was just so pliant and limp beneath him, he thought, that he could barely stand it, as it was really,  _ really  _ turning him on, so much so that he immediately imagined himself holding Erwin’s hips down so that he could let go and fuck him completely senseless. He could do it, he knew. He had before,  _ twice _ , and although the first time Erwin had seemed nervous and been a bit tense — it had been a long while since he’d done that, he’d told Levi — by the end of it he’d been making sounds that Levi had not yet heard from him otherwise. 

In fact, he’d told Levi he’d felt so full that he hadn’t been able to believe it, which was a statement that had at first almost made him laugh because...well, he wasn’t  _ small  _ by any means, but he wasn’t Erwin’s size either and he couldn’t fathom that it was the same, but then again, Erwin  _ had  _ been tight, just as tight as he was now around all three of the fingers he was currently fucking him with. Still, even so, he was open and ready at the same time, Levi could feel, slick and wet and because of that, because Erwin was breathing hard and twitching his hips upward for more, he fucking gave it to him, moving in a veritable flash and ending up buried balls deep inside of him after removing his fingers and grabbing the lube within just a matter of moments. 

Like with everything else, sliding his cock into his ass had been easy, easy enough so that he was essentially able to fill him in one long, smooth stroke, slowly pushing forward while Erwin only groaned a bit beneath him. He’d sat up onto his elbows to watch, Levi had noticed, to stare down between his spread legs as Levi did the exact same thing, caught up in the sight of himself disappearing into Erwin’s ass inch by inch, but fell back after a second while reaching up to fist a hand into his own hair after smoothing it away from his forehead. He bit his lip and closed his eyes and all the muscles of his torso seemed to ripple, and  _ fuck _ , it was honestly all Levi could do to not come right then and there, as the sight of Erwin, of such a big man, with his legs spread and practically trembling with pleasure because of  _ his  _ cock was almost too much for him to handle. 

“Shit.” He blurted suddenly, his voice sounding a bit high-pitched and causing Erwin to open his eyes and look back up at him. “I mean...uh, Erwin, are you good?”

He only asked because he’d meant to before once he’d entered him, he thought,  _ just  _ to make sure, even though he was pretty confident he already knew what Erwin’s answer was going to be without him having to speak up. 

“I’m good, Levi.” Erwin responded sure enough, offering him a lopsided, open-mouthed smile before he swallowed and then eyed him up and down. “But...do you think you could start moving? I—

Levi didn’t wait for Erwin to finish his sentence before he did indeed start moving, although he couldn’t help but feel a vague sense of amusement at the polite way he’d asked beneath everything else. If it had been him, Levi knew, he would have told Erwin to hurry the fuck up, but regardless, Erwin’s words had the same effect and caused Levi to do that anyway. In fact, he straightened his back so that he was essentially at a right angle to Erwin’s body, grabbing onto his thighs and pulling out almost all the way before pushing back in to thrust once gently. 

Watching how Erwin sucked in a small breath in response — interrupting himself from where he’d been speaking — and let his eyes flutter shut, Levi did it again, and again and again until he’d fallen into a steady, easy rhythm. It wasn’t too fast yet, he thought, even though Erwin’s hips were moving eagerly and urging him on too, because Levi was enjoying watching him, noticing how Erwin’s fingers fisted into the sheets and tugged on them while Levi fucked him, how he gasped, breathing hard, and arched his back whenever Levi seemed to hit the right spot, as well as the way his big cock bounced up and down healthily while they moved. 

Unable to stop himself, Levi reached out to wrap his fingers around the base of it, holding on and stroking Erwin up and down a few times in a way that made him groan. He jerked his hips up harder too, Levi noticed, and clenched around him, clearly seeking more friction and inevitably causing Levi to thrust faster whether he intended to or not. It just built up that way naturally and he began to moan too, propelled by the pleasure growing in his groin from how tight Erwin was around him and how good it felt to let go and fuck him harder — although he still didn’t  _ all  _ the way, because he was determined to make Erwin come first no matter fucking what.

Keeping that in mind, he let go of Erwin’s cock for a moment and grabbed one of his bigass thighs, sliding his palm — sticky and wet with pre-come from where he’d been stroking him — up underneath his knee so that he could lift his leg and bend it back a bit, leaning forward over him some, too, and effectively changing the angle in a way that he hoped would make it feel like he was thrusting into Erwin a lot deeper. Judging by the noise he made in response, it worked, because Erwin’s low baritone seemed to hitch and he let out a breathy exhale, reaching up to grasp Levi’s waist with his fingers as if to hold him there so he wouldn’t move away from that position.

_ “Levi.” _ He gasped too, squeezing his eyes shut again and tipping his head back further on the mattress. It exposed the full column of his gorgeous, thick neck, Levi thought, which suddenly gave him the urge to mark it all up with his mouth, but his chest was closer and easier to reach, so he fell over Erwin even more and fixed his lips over one nipple, biting down into the muscle around it hard enough to leave indentations from his teeth while he thrusted his cock in quicker and grinded his hips into Erwin’s ass. “Fuck, Levi,  _ ah _ —

“You like that, huh?” Levi asked, unable to help himself in between sucking and licking at Erwin’s nipple, digging his fingers sharply into his thigh until he felt Erwin grab his own leg himself so that he could pull it back further — something that just made a sharp jolt of lust go through Levi’s belly before he grabbed at Erwin’s cock again and began to really snap his hips harder. “Right there?”

“Yes, that’s...that’s the spot.”

“Are you gonna come soon, big guy?”

Erwin’s only response was to groan and dig the heel of his other foot into the bed so that he could arch his beautiful back again, although the sound was almost drowned out by that of Levi’s skin slapping against Erwin’s as he continued to fuck him, having sat back onto his knees and grabbed at his hip in an effort to do so as quick and as unrestrained as he could. Now, he was all but slamming into him because he could sense that Erwin was getting pretty damned wound up even if he hadn’t said so — not that he could have held himself back anymore from letting go like this, though, because he just  _ couldn’t  _ — Levi closed his eyes and let his own head fall forward, gritting his teeth in an effort to concentrate on hurriedly jerking Erwin off and keeping up the rhythm so that he could pound his prostate as hard as he could.

Like that, a few moments later, Erwin grew so tense beneath Levi that he seemed to be almost rigid with it — right up until he all but froze for a second, though, becoming oddly quiet as if the breath had been stolen from his lungs before his release hit him and he shuddered in pleasure on the mattress. Immediately coming all over himself, Levi saw, because he had, of course, opened his eyes so he could fucking witness this, he spilled a  _ lot _ , even spurting one thin rope of white almost all the way over his chest at the start before most of the mess began to center on his stomach. 

Obviously, he moaned all the way through it and made a deep sound in his chest while Levi pumped him almost desperately and continued to thrust hard until he was through, his own hips starting to stutter, though, because he’d barely been holding his own orgasm at bay and watching Erwin as his ass clenched and unclenched around him was almost immediately too much. Indeed, it wasn’t much longer after Erwin seemed to calm somewhat that Levi finished too, biting down hard on his bottom lip and pushing his cock in deep to bury himself one last time before he exhaled a groan and felt a flash of pleasure so strong he swore he saw white. 

Gasping raggedly for breath — from exertion at that point, as much as everything else too — his thighs trembled and he dug his fingers into Erwin’s hips unconsciously for purchase for a few seconds while he experienced only bliss, remaining still with his head thrown back now until he became vaguely aware of Erwin’s hands on his wrists, his body shifting a bit beneath Levi’s own as he sat up some and gently tugged him forward. Opening his eyes, Levi glanced down at him and found Erwin looking just as sweaty, exhausted, and out of it as he suddenly fucking felt, and gave in to what he clearly wanted, pulling out — he left wet, warm come in Erwin’s ass, and his cock was slick — and crawling over his middle so he could basically collapse at his side. 

Not even bothering to remove his legs from in between Erwin’s, he left them draped over his thigh and ended up cradled inside one of Erwin’s arms and against his chest, close enough for Erwin to turn his head and kiss his cheek, and then his lips, although the both of them were too tired suddenly to do anything that required any more energy than that. It was pretty late at night, Levi knew, and with what he’d done to Erwin...well, after the massage and everything else, he would be shocked if he didn’t end up passed out and snoring within the next minute or two. 

Sure enough, although he was hugging Levi fairly tightly, his breathing became deep and even and he was fast asleep before Levi could summon the amount of energy he might need to get up — energy that he now did not want to bother expending, because he was quite warm and content too, his body still humming with the lingering effects of his orgasm while he continued to lie in the blissful afterglow. As nice as it was, he did not want to move from Erwin’s side, and so he just curled up even more against him and closed his eyes, drifting off within a few minutes just like Erwin had while feeling about as safe and satisfied as he thought he could ever possibly get. 

While he was asleep, he dreamed that they were floating in Uri’s pool, the both of them perched on a large float that rocked back and forth gently over the calm water. It was pleasant and relaxing, Levi thought, and he knew right then that he didn’t want to be anywhere else, but suddenly, the float turned into a mattress, and the pool turned into the ocean, and when Levi leaned over to look into the water he saw the bottom of it disappear, turning darker and stretching down farther and farther away as he felt himself lurch to the side and begin to tumble face first into the blackness. 

At that point, he woke up in a half-panic, wide-eyed and alarmed until he realized that he was, of course, not about to drown in the sea but still in Erwin’s bed, although the boat was not exactly resting calm and still on top of the waves like it had been when he’d gone to sleep. No, now it was rocking wildly — or at least, wildly enough to freak someone like him out — because it was storming outside, pouring rain and thundering while the wind blew hard enough to clearly whip up the waves and cause the boat to oscillate back and forth underneath them. Naturally, Erwin was still fucking snoring beside him, though, now lying on his stomach and facing away from him without any kind of care in the world. 

Clearly, Levi thought,  _ he  _ wasn’t bothered, but still half asleep and with his heart pounding from his dream, he felt all of the initial fears and apprehensions he’d held about ever setting foot on Erwin’s boat in the first place return strongly, so much so that he sat up and reached over without even thinking about it to shake Erwin awake so that he could get them the hell off this death trap if he needed to. 

“Erwin!” He said too, placing his hands on his back and shoving at him roughly enough to jolt him out of sleep. 

Hearing him come back to consciousness with a loud, half-snort, half-grunting sound, Levi watched Erwin lift his head up and look around, squinting in the darkness and appearing confused until his eyes rested on Levi and he somewhat realized that something might be wrong. 

“Levi.” He still mumbled though, wiping some drool away from the corner of his mouth — something that Levi would have thought to be amusing and even cute otherwise, but not right now, not when lightning flashed outside and the boat suddenly reeled a bit on it’s anchor. “What’s going on? What’s—

Upon hearing thunder rumble through the sky again, Erwin interrupted himself and drew his brows down in concern, thankfully seeming to figure out why Levi had woken him up before he could open his mouth in order to tell him.

“A storm.” He murmured then, pushing himself up onto his elbows and crawling forward a bit so that he could peek through the curtains covering the window that sat behind his bed. 

The mattress was pressed right up against the wall so he didn’t have to get up to do so, Levi knew, but despite knowing that it was there, he hadn’t been entirely sure he wanted to look out himself after he’d woken up because he he honestly feared what it was that he might see. 

“It’s alright, Levi.” Erwin told him after he’d looked out, though, blinking slowly and shifting away from the window so that he could roll onto his side, holding out an arm for Levi and giving him a lazy, sleepy looking smile. “Everything’s fine. Come here.”

Watching him, Levi bit his lip and stayed still for a moment, thinking. Was Erwin sure? It wasn’t that he didn’t trust him, he thought, but he could only see one small part of the boat from inside the nearby window. What if something happened to it on the other side, and they were sinking and didn’t know it? What if they went back to sleep and the anchor snapped, and they drifted out to sea and got lost? Would they be able to get out of the house in time if something  _ did  _ happen? Sitting there, Levi knew that his worries were likely unfounded; after all, Erwin had told him that he’d once weathered a hurricane inside his boat in this same spot and been fine. 

Clearly, this was not that kind of storm, but still, he didn’t like it. The rolling of the boat on the waves made him nervous and the sound of the rain pelting the walls was almost enough to make him shiver, but what did he want Erwin to do?

“Would you...feel better if I went outside to check on things?” Erwin said then — apparently having some sort of idea of what Levi was thinking while he stared at him — after noticing that Levi had not moved and just remained tense on the bed beside him. 

Again, Levi paused and considered it. That might reassure him some, he thought, but then...Erwin would have to get up and go outside, and get all wet in the wind and rain. He didn’t want to make him do that, especially when he knew in the back of his mind that he was probably overreacting. “No...I mean—

“Do you want me to take you home?”

At that, Levi raised his eyebrows. Take him home? No; he rejected that idea even faster than he had the first. He didn’t want to leave, he thought, not this early, not before it was light out after he’d promised Erwin he’d spend the night with him on his boat. He liked staying with him and wanted to be there for as long as he could despite his initial apprehensions, and...well, although the storm made him nervous, he wasn’t going to run away like some kid who was frightened of a little thunder. That was ridiculous, and  _ he  _ was being ridiculous, because he trusted Erwin as he’d thought, right? If he said it was fine, then it was fine, _ right? _

“I’m okay.” Levi replied with that in mind, shaking his head then and taking a breath before he accepted Erwin’s earlier offer of comfort and laid back down. 

Pulling the bed sheet over them both — they’d been sleeping without it up until then — he squirmed up closer to him so that he was lying on his side and their noses were just a few inches apart, swallowing and looking into his eyes as Erwin smiled at him again and reached up with one hand.

“It’s alright.” He murmured again, brushing his thumb over his cheek before he pushed a lock of hair out of his eyes. “It sounds and feels much worse than it is, I promise.”

“Really, because it seems like we’re in the middle of a fucking monsoon.” Levi scoffed, biting his lip again anxiously before he forced himself to stop and cuddled closer. 

Pushing his face into Erwin’s neck, he closed his eyes and inhaled his scent and focused on his warmth, willing himself to shut out the sounds of the gale from outside and finding that he  _ did  _ eventually start to feel more comfortable, at least somewhat.

“Yes, and I have an alarm that will go off if anything happens, you know. If the boat starts to take on too much water, it’ll start ringing and wake me up.” Erwin continued, shifting onto his back a bit now so that he could hold Levi up against his chest again. 

Only able to grunt this time in response to that, Levi admittedly did feel more reassured because of that — thinking about it, the real fear he had was something happening while they were asleep and them not realizing it until it was too late — and found himself gradually relaxing even more after Erwin placed a hand on his head and ran his fingers through his hair for a bit. He kissed his forehead and talked to him for a while longer until the wind began to die down, thankfully, and Levi felt himself drifting off again, lulled by the sound of Erwin’s heartbeat beneath his ear as the rain turned into a soothing drizzle rather than anything else.

Like that, he soon fell asleep again, and did not wake up until the sun had finally risen.


	17. Chapter 17

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In the 2 weeks that followed, Erwin spent even more time with Levi than he had been already — something that he honestly hadn’t even necessarily thought possible with how often they’d seen each other before. With their relationship sealed now, though, and the fact that they were determined to make the most of their remaining days together before Levi had to leave the island, they were apart only when they absolutely couldn’t do anything to help it, and Levi ended up staying at his boathouse so often that, incredibly enough...well, it was almost like he had just actually moved in with him somehow on accident.

In the 2 weeks that followed, Erwin spent even more time with Levi than he had been already — something that he honestly hadn’t even necessarily thought possible with how often they’d seen each other before. With their relationship sealed now, though, and the fact that they were determined to make the most of their remaining days together before Levi had to leave the island, they were apart only when they absolutely couldn’t do anything to help it, and Levi ended up staying at his boathouse so often that, incredibly enough...well, it was almost like he had just actually moved in with him somehow on accident. 

Sure, he had his family that he still saw sometimes, of course, but much to Erwin’s surprise — at least after the storm that had blown through the first time he’d stayed, because Erwin had honestly worried he’d never come back - Levi began coming to visit him there more and more often, not only spending the night with him, but cooking and eating dinner with him too, having breakfast in the morning, and staying there  _ by himself _ if Erwin had to work to wait for him to get back, providing Erwin with a very nice greeting upon his return before they found something to do in the afternoon and repeated it all over again the next day and the next. 

In short, they had moved their ‘base of operations’ so to speak, from Levi’s guesthouse up on the mountain to Erwin’s decidedly more modest boat dwelling, and because Erwin knew that his uncle’s mansion was a lot nicer and roomier, it meant a lot to him that Levi was willing to do such a thing. Still, though, he did wonder why, as they hadn’t necessarily talked about it and he would have never expected it, but thought that perhaps it had something to do with the fact that Levi had more privacy at his boat — or at least, he did from his family. Sure, there were always people around at the marina, but they didn’t know Levi. They didn’t care what he did, and also, Erwin had realized that when they stayed at his place, it was a lot easier to forget that Levi was on vacation. 

At the guesthouse they couldn’t, he had learned, but on his boat it was different. On his boat things felt more real to him - especially when they settled into a sort of routine, and began to do everything together, including chores and errands and every day tasks - and Erwin suspected that Levi experienced the same thing, even if neither one of them had never actually said it. Doing so would, of course, shatter the illusion they were both enjoying that they weren’t a normal couple and that this would have to end, and because of that, Erwin didn’t protest when Levi began to leave his things there — not that he would have anyway — nor did he speak up when Levi took it upon himself to start cleaning up the place sometimes as if it were his own. 

He wanted to do it, Erwin knew, even though he surely was aware of the fact that he didn’t have to, and so instead of telling him that Erwin just thanked him for the help instead, focusing on how happy it made him to have Levi around and essentially live his life with him right there beside him. It was nice and Levi just fit into it so well, and although sure, they had their personality differences because  _ everyone  _ did, they worked well together. They got along and complemented each other and were willing to adapt to things they weren’t used to — although Levi obviously had to do this far more than Erwin, what with his apprehension about everything related to the water, anyway. 

It was remarkable, though, how determined he was to overcome it and not let any of it hold him back. He’d made it known from day one that he didn’t want it to, Erwin thought, at least with everything that had to do with the boat, which was why he’d gone from being hesitant to even step foot on it in the first place to staying there alone while Erwin had to leave him to go to work at the beach. He was even learning how to operate it — or at least, how to fill the water tank and work the generator and the way that the anchor functioned, and things like that — just by watching Erwin do it so often, which had actually given him an idea when he suddenly received an offer for a charter job that promised to really pay, as it would require him to take a party out for scuba diving to a reef that was about two and a half hours away. 

Because of that, he would be gone for an entire day where he wouldn’t be able to see or really talk to Levi at all until he got back, and although it wouldn’t be the end of the world if that happened, he supposed, he was loathe to do it when they now had only a month left to spend together. Would Levi want to come with him, he wondered? If he did, it would mean enduring 12 hours or more on the boat out at sea, far away from land and probably along the fringes of acceptable cell phone service. In every direction they would only be able to see the ocean, he knew, and Levi would have to stay on board by himself for a while because Erwin would be underwater guiding his guests and leading what was essentially a tour around the reef. 

To him, none of that sounded like a big deal, obviously, but with Levi, he wasn’t sure. Would he be amenable to such things? Was all of this too far past his comfort zone, Erwin wondered, or would he be willing to try it? ‘Trying,’ though, wasn’t really an option. If he agreed to go out he would be stuck out there, Erwin knew, because he couldn’t turn around and bring him back with paying guests on board, but still, the only way to find out if he wanted to, he supposed, would be to actually open his mouth and ask. 

“By the way, Levi.” He started the morning after he’d been contacted about the job, glancing up at him from the table while he cooked scrambled eggs on Erwin’s tiny, two burner stove. “I wanted to ask you something.”

He’d been there for three days without going home, Erwin knew, and was wearing nothing but his shirt, looking impossibly cute with his messy bed hair and right at home while he prepared breakfast for them both and navigated Erwin’s small kitchenette. 

“Oh?” Levi replied, glancing over and raising an eyebrow while Erwin tried to figure out the best way to propose this. 

“I received a job offer to take some guests out scuba diving on my boat. It will pay very, very well.”

“No shit?” Levi asked at that, his eyes widening a bit as he stopped what he was doing to stare. “That’s good, right? You took it, didn’t you?”

Pausing, Erwin gave Levi a smile. Clearly, he thought, he was oblivious to what the job meant for him — he would have to go home, or come with him — and what Erwin wanted to ask, and only cared about the fact that Erwin would be earning some money. Some  _ much needed _ money, they both knew, because he had actually been working less lately on the beach. His hours weren’t what they normally might be because he had been spending a lot of time with Levi, which was his fault and worth it, but had caused his already stretched thin funds to become even more stretched and thin than they already were. The large sum he would get for chartering his boat, as well as leading a scuba diving tour, would help a lot, and it made his heart flutter to think that Levi was happy for him because of this. 

“I did. But, ah…”

“What?”

Erwin stopped again, watching as Levi switched off the burner so that he could begin to plate the now finished eggs. They had bacon to go with it, as well as toast and tea, and he wanted to wait until Levi was seated across from him before he proposed the idea. 

“Well…” He began, once Levi had given Erwin his plate and paused to kiss his cheek. “I’ll have to leave around sunrise, and I probably won’t be back until after it sets. The diving site is about two and a half hours out, and we’ll be there all day.”

“Okay.” Levi replied, raising an eyebrow because he obviously knew that wasn’t just it. 

“And I—

“You want me to go with you?”

“I...yes. How did you know?” Erwin said after Levi interrupted him, laughing a bit despite himself because of how quickly he’d figured it out. 

Unsurprisingly, though, Levi just shrugged and sipped his tea, appearing nonplussed even though Erwin had no doubt that he was also curious. “I dunno. I just had a feeling.”

“Well, that’s what I was going to ask. But obviously, I’d understand if you don’t want to. I’d just hate to be without you for an entire day.”

“I can still come over when you get back, you fucking sap.” Levi snorted, very obviously biting back a smile even as he teased him while Erwin reached across the table to grab his hand. 

“I know. But your company would make all of it a lot more bearable.” Erwin replied, because it  _ was  _ true. 

Operating his boat, scuba diving with others, and entertaining guests all by himself was hard work, and although he wasn’t asking Levi along so that he’d have help, his presence there would make it a lot easier for him to get through all of it. Still, though, Levi had drawn his brows down, looked away and started biting his lip by then — an expression that meant he was fretting, Erwin knew now — and he didn’t want to pressure him, suddenly worrying that he’d gone about this the wrong way already and decided that he should backtrack. 

“You don’t have to, though. I don’t want you to be uncomfortable, and we’d be out at sea all day, away from land. You’d also be on the boat by yourself while I’m diving. It won’t hurt my feelings if you say no, I promise. I can manage alone fine, I just thought I’d ask.”

While he spoke, Levi shook his head in what Erwin assumed was rejection of his offer. However, he then muttered something that made him raise his eyebrows in surprise. “I mean, I want to…”

_ What? _ He thought. Levi  _ wanted _ to? That was more than he expected him to say, but still, his eyes were unfocused like he was thinking, and clearly that was not the same as him telling Erwin yes. Perhaps he wanted to, but was not entirely sure if he could stand it. Or, did he just have concerns? 

“We’ll be perfectly safe out there.” Erwin murmured, in case that was it. “But if anything happens, I have a beacon that will send a distress signal. We’d be rescued in no time.”

“Are there sharks?” Levi asked then, finally glancing back at him and causing Erwin to blink. 

Again, he paused. Sharks were not uncommon at the reef. In fact, the place was full of wildlife, which was the reason that it was a popular diving spot. However, Erwin had been several times — and encountered sharks so many times he had lost count in other places — and had never had any problems with them getting too close. Even if they did, it didn’t mean they would automatically attack, either; sharks were misunderstood creatures in his mind, but he also did not blame Levi for his nervousness about their sharp teeth. 

“It’s possible that there will be some sharks underwater, yes.” He said with that in mind, speaking calmly and watching Levi’s reaction like a hawk. 

Expecting him to immediately say no, Erwin instead heard him hum thoughtfully. Then, he pushed his eggs around on his plate, and next took a bite of toast. Looking introspective while he chewed, he finally shrugged one shoulder and fixed Erwin with a teasing look, and took him completely by surprise when he then opened his mouth to speak. 

“Guess I’ll have to fucking go then.” He said, sighing dramatically through his nose with a mouthful of bread. “I mean, someone has to pull your ass out of the water when you get attacked by a shark.”

At that, Erwin’s eyes went round. He stayed quiet for a moment, caught off guard by his answer and the way in which he’d delivered it — although it was  _ so Levi _ , so roundabout and funny and  _ endearing  _ to Erwin that it made his chest ache — but then he let out a loud, happy laugh, a short bark of it that made Levi snort and go back to biting his lip. This time, Erwin knew, it was because he was trying not to smile, and seeing as how it caused Erwin to feel suddenly struck with fondness, he leaned over the small table to press his lips to Levi’s forehead. He gave him a peck there, and then one on the mouth, lingering for a moment when Levi responded warmly and reached up to cup his cheeks with both hands.

“Don’t expect me to get in there or whatever, though.” He said then, meaning the water, obviously, as he pulled away just long enough to speak before they kissed again. “It’s too deep. I’ll throw you a life preserver, or some shit.”

“No, I won’t.” Erwin replied, because as much as he still hoped to get Levi to swim with him in the ocean — they were making progress, for the other day, Levi had waded in with him up to his hips — any reef that far out was not the place to do it. 

No, as far as he was concerned, the only thing Levi would have to do that day was decide how he wanted to entertain himself on the boat while Erwin was working, because he had already made up his mind that if Levi agreed to come, he would do everything he could to make sure he was pampered and comfortable so that he would not regret his choice or be distracted by any of his worries. 

“Good.” Levi murmured at that, a teasing glint appearing in his eyes before he gave Erwin one more quick kiss, gently ran his fingers through his hair, and let him go. “Now eat your breakfast before it gets cold.” 

“Yes, my darling.”  Erwin said, obeying with a smile that only grew wider when Levi clicked his tongue in response to the term of endearment — something that was accompanied by a noticeable blush, even though Erwin had uttered it in jest, at least mostly.

Like that, they finished their food together, chatting amicably about the logistics of the upcoming trip and other things until they were through, until Erwin rose to gather their plates and do the dishes — it was his duty, as Levi had cooked and that was their deal — while Levi disappeared into the other room. Assuming that he had crawled back into bed to go back to sleep because he sometimes did that after breakfast, Erwin instead found himself pleasantly surprised a few moments later when Levi returned to coax him into the shower, although ‘coaxing’ was a relative term, as all it took was the sight of Levi’s bare shoulder to get him to turn around and immediately follow. 

In the bathroom, they wedged themselves into the small space — it was a tight, tight fit with the two of them in there, but that just made it easier for them to fool around if they wanted — with Levi’s arms already wound around Erwin’s neck, their lips pressed together too as the warm water poured over them and made previously dry skin wet and slick to the touch. Needless to say, like that, they ended up in the throes of pleasure before they could even bother to reach for the soap, with Levi hoisted up against the wall by Erwin, who pinned him there and entered him easily because of how loose and open he still was from the night before. 

Fucking him in that position, Erwin listened to Levi’s soft moans, kissing his lips and then his neck, holding his legs around his waist and only pulling away once the entire time to catch a glimpse of Levi with his head tilted to the side and his eyes closed, his expression one of pure bliss as Erwin moved inside him and the water trickled down steadily over his face. It plastered his bangs to his forehead and Erwin suddenly felt so smitten that he almost couldn’t breathe — or at least couldn’t continue, because he came abruptly a few moments later, losing control as a result of his own emotions and how perfect Levi felt around him. 

He shuddered, and moaned low in his throat while Levi grabbed his neck to kiss him deeply again, holding him through it until he let out a small whining noise that he apparently couldn’t hold back. It was muffled, Erwin thought, like he’d been trying to, but it belayed his own surely desperate need and caused him to spring back into action, ending up sinking to his knees right there in the shower so he could suck him off while Levi fisted fingers into his hair and came apart shaking. He spilled down Erwin’s throat and he gladly swallowed it all, continuing to lazily lick at him until he became too sensitive and they could finally get to actually washing themselves off. 

They did that quickly, and afterward Levi returned to the bed for a nap like Erwin had expected him to before, curling up under his sheets and apparently getting so comfortable that he was dozing before Erwin had even finished getting dressed. Still, he was coherent enough to wish Erwin well at work when he kissed him goodbye, mumbling something too about going to see his mother once he woke up so that she would stop texting him. The complaint made Erwin chuckle, but part of him could not help but wonder if he should feel a little guilty for taking Levi away from his family so much. 

He was supposed to be on vacation with them, after all, and he did not want to do anything to make any of them dislike him. No, it was even more important to him than it had been the first time he’d met Levi’s mother and uncles that they liked him, but the few times he’d mentioned it, Levi had just shushed him and told him that they did, and that it didn’t matter if he was never home because he could see them whenever the fuck he wanted when he returned to the city. That was not the case with Erwin, they both knew, and so he was obviously not going to push the issue. 

Having Levi to himself was nothing to complain about, after all, and so he couldn’t help but be happy when he got home that afternoon and found Levi already back from Uri’s place, curled up in a chair outside and reading a book underneath the shade of his boat’s awning. He was barefoot, wearing shorts and a tank top with his bangs pinned back again, and looked like he belonged there, Erwin thought, like a real islander, and had two beers beside him — one of which was open already, while the other was thrust into his hand after he’d walked up smiling and Levi had all but jumped to his feet so that he could wrap his arms around him in greeting.

“Welcome back, handsome.” He said, going up onto his tiptoes to give him a quick, warm kiss too. “How was the beach?”

“Good. Lots of people wanted lessons today. The paddle board was popular, and I got some nice tips.” Erwin answered, reaching into the bag he carried with him to pull out a handful of slightly damp bills. 

He hadn’t had a chance to count it all yet, he thought, but by his estimation he had earned about 30 extra bucks — a very good sum considering the amount of hours he had worked, and which he had already thought about using to buy him and Levi dinner. They hadn’t been out like that in a while, after all, and Erwin found himself wanting to treat him after he’d agreed to go with him on the charter job earlier that morning. However, before he could even begin to propose the idea, it became apparent that Levi had already developed some ideas of his own, as he directed Erwin’s attention to a cooler that was resting nearby the chair he’d been seated in. Erwin hadn’t noticed it before, but Levi grabbed his hand and tugged him over to it, biting his lip and raising his eyebrows suggestively as if to encourage Erwin to open it up. 

“Look what I got from the market.” He said too, watching Erwin like a hawk as he stepped aside so that he could kneel down to inspect it.

“A cooler?” Erwin asked right away, purposefully teasing Levi, of course, and smiling when he responded with his usual snort just like he’d known he would.

“Yeah.” He also responded dryly. “I bought you a cooler, to go with the five other ones you already have. You like it?”

“Of course I like it. It’s from you.”

“Just open it.”

Laughing a bit, Erwin did open it, running his fingers along the edge first before he flipped up  the twin latches so that he could lift the lid. Immediately, when he did so, a very strong seafood smell hit him — although one that only indicated something fresh and that had him raising his eyebrows as he glanced down and saw two large, dark shapes resting inside a huge pile of ice. They were lobsters, he realized in the next second as he pushed aside some of the frozen cubes to confirm, lobsters that were quite large, and could not have been very cheap to purchase. 

“Levi—

“Don’t worry about it.” Levi interrupted, before he could even start and presumably knowing what he’d been about to say: that this was too much, too extravagant, especially since one of these things alone was more than the $30 he’d gotten on tips that he’d been thinking about using for dinner. “I was just walking around, or whatever, and I saw them. I remember you saying you haven’t had that shit in a while the other day, so…”

Levi trailed off, drawing his brows down a bit when Erwin’s eyes widened in surprise and he glanced at him to the lobster and then back again, honestly not recalling at first that he’d actually said that. It must have just been an off-hand comment, he thought, but it was true. He hadn’t had lobster in ages because of the cost, and it was also one of his favorite foods. The fact that Levi had taken it to heart and surprised him like this, Erwin thought...well, he found it very touching, and he could not help the way affection welled up inside of him quicker than he could contain it.

All but grinning, suddenly, he jumped to his feet, rounding on Levi without skipping a beat so that he could wrap his arms around his middle and pick him up off the ground. Holding him like that, he ducked his head down for a kiss, too, and swallowed the sound of surprise Levi made in response, all while he grabbed onto Erwin’s neck for purchase, automatically wrapped his legs around him, and leaned into the embrace a second later. 

“Thank you.” Erwin said after he’d pulled away, giving Levi another wide smile that he hoped conveyed his gratefulness even if his excitement hadn’t. “That’s very thoughtful of you.”

In response to that, Levi just stared at him with a blush on his cheeks, clearly pleased by his reaction but seemingly a bit taken aback by it as well, as he was apparently only able to eye Erwin’s expression before he shook his head and let out an amused scoff, and then lower his head so that he could press their lips together again to hide his smile. At that point, Erwin could only kiss him back, finding himself feeling so incredibly fond of the man in his arms that it almost hurt. He was so kind, and cute, and the way he took care of him — for that was what he was doing sometimes, and it had been a long time since Erwin had the pleasure of experiencing something like that — was amazing. 

Indeed, the life he was currently living with Levi was perfect and quickly turning into everything he wanted for the rest of it. How, he wondered then, had he managed to get so lucky?


	18. Chapter 18

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Levi.” Erwin said then, voicing his thoughts, Levi suspected, and turning his head a bit so that he could kiss him quickly on the lips. He was still leaned over so he was close enough so that Erwin could do so, and obviously, he allowed it, lingering once he was through and again finding himself having to bite back a smile. “First the lobster, and now this? You’re too good to me.”

Naturally, Levi thought, the lobsters turned out to be the most delicious thing they had made so far, but it was Erwin’s reaction to them in general that pleased him more than anything else. Although once the entire meal was cooked he’d eaten so much that he could barely fucking move afterward, earlier, he’d acted completely overjoyed at how Levi had bought the food for him in the first place, almost gleeful, in fact, as if he had done Erwin some huge favor or as if no one had ever given him a gift like that before. Levi seriously doubted that, but it still made his chest ache a bit, both out of fondness and happiness that  _ Erwin  _ was happy, but also because he felt that Erwin deserved things like that all the time and hated the thought that he didn’t get them. 

Still, to him it had been nothing, a fucking no-brainer, so to speak, when he’d seen the lobster, as although he really hadn’t gone there planning to buy them like he’d said, he remembered Erwin mentioning how the last time he’d eaten one had been on his 18th birthday. His father had bought it for him, he’d told Levi, but he hadn’t thought it was  _ that  _ big of a deal, and had honestly purchased them more with the idea in mind that it would make for a very special, memorable evening together on Erwin’s boat. Doing something like that was almost his goal every day, in fact, along with just spending as much time as he could with Erwin in general, of course, because he knew he would have to leave and all this would be ending soon — a thought that was always in the back of his mind despite the fact that he swore he’d never been this happy or carefree, like a looming, dark cloud out at sea that grew closer and closer to shore with each day that passed.

It all went by far quicker than Levi would have liked, naturally, and by then, he absolutely  _ dreaded  _ when it would become time for him to say goodbye to Erwin with every fibre of his being, as it was just...he’d never felt like this about anyone before, and he already knew that he was going to miss Erwin so much that he didn’t even know how he would bear it. Additionally, even if he was confident that Erwin had the same types of feelings about him, part of him still feared that no matter what, their attempt at long distance wouldn’t work out and he’d be left more heartbroken than he might have been before. 

Still, what was he supposed to do,  _ not  _ take the risk? No, he’d already decided a long time ago — before they had even slept together and Levi had truly opened his heart to Erwin — that it was worth it, and although his chest ached to think that he would one day wake up and be over three thousand miles away from him, he knew that if they could make it work then eventually they would be able to see each other again. Eventually, he thought, they would find a way to visit and then maybe even one day the separation would no longer be permanent, as Levi could not help but wonder if he had perhaps found the man that he would spend the rest of his life with. 

It was too early to know for sure, obviously, and he had often been the type of person to scoff at the concept of ‘the one’ or ‘soulmates’ anyway, but being with Erwin made him wonder if such things did truly exist. Being with Erwin felt undeniably right in every way possible, he thought, and although there were still many uncertainties about their future, of course, as well as a voice in the back of his mind telling him that this was just  _ the honeymoon period _ and things could change, what he  _ did  _ know was that he didn’t want anything or anyone else right then, and couldn’t imagine that he’d ever be able to find something or someone as good as what he had found with Erwin. 

After all, he’d been on dates before. He’d considered other guys romantically, but this was far, far different. Nothing had ever made him so happy so easily, and the last thing he wanted to do was let it go — especially when he considered how lucky he was to have found a person as special as Erwin in the first place. Continually, he wondered how he had managed to snag him when he could undoubtedly have anyone he fucking wanted, and why he liked Levi so much. He knew he wasn’t the most charming of individuals, of course, but even so, Erwin had never once made Levi feel like he couldn’t just be himself. 

That was probably one of the most important things about their relationship for him, he thought, although there were many others too, obviously, and he hoped that he made Erwin feel the same way. He hoped Erwin was comfortable around him all the time, but with the amount of hours they now spent together, he found it hard to doubt that was the case. Surely if it wasn’t, then he would have objected to Levi using his boat as some sort of extended stay hotel room. At that point, that was basically what he was doing, but after a couple of days there he had decided that he didn’t mind it so much after all. 

Yes, it was tiny. Yes, it was parked in a crowded marina. Yes, it was on the water, and was oftentimes uncomfortably warm because Erwin’s portable AC unit was absolute shit. Those were the main reasons that Levi had once been unsure about the place, but now it seemed that he’d had a change of heart. In a way, he thought, it was sort of quaint and charming - or at least, the day to day routine he and Erwin had established there was, because despite the fact that Levi knew it was a stupid notion, he could not help but imagine that it was what their life would be like if he ever ended up living there permanently. 

Even if he didn’t, he thought, he still liked learning about how Erwin lived his life on the island and it was probably only natural that  _ he  _ become somewhat interested in  _ Erwin’s  _ interests — Erwin did the same with him where he could — and obviously, he wanted to spend as much time as possible with him while he could before he was gone. Those were the reasons that he had agreed to go on the diving job with Erwin when he had asked, all despite the fact that his initial reaction to spending 12 or more hours on a boat in the middle of the deep blue sea was  _ fuck no.  _ That, to him, was a disaster waiting to happen even if by then his worst fears had faded somewhat, but he had been able to tell that Erwin really wanted him to come. 

Erwin, who would be underwater most of the time, Levi supposed, which was something that honestly made him more nervous than being on the boat. Would Erwin be okay down there? Erwin seemed to think so, but he’d also said there might actually be fucking sharks, and Levi didn’t like it. More than that, he didn’t like Erwin going where Levi wouldn’t be able to make sure he was safe, as although he talked shit, he knew that if something were to happen to Erwin in the water, he probably wouldn’t actually hesitate to jump in so that he could help him. 

_ Nothing  _ was going to happen on the trip, though. Levi was just going to keep Erwin company, he assured himself, and, he had decided, to help him with the job, as there wasn’t anything he could do about Erwin taking it on anyway. He needed the money, Levi knew, and he worked hard. He deserved a big payout so that he could buy as much lobster as he wanted like Levi had thought, and even bigger tips. That was why he had gotten the idea to actually assist him with his work where he could in the hopes that he would get one, although Erwin unsurprisingly protested when Levi began asking him if there was anything that he could do to help.

“You don’t have to do that.” He told him the day before — about 48 hours  _ after  _ Levi had rendered Erwin paralyzed on the couch because he’d eaten too much lobster — while they, or at least Levi, floated gently around Uri’s big pool. 

They were there for once, Levi thought, because his mother had been  _ begging  _ him to bring Erwin over for dinner again ever since the last time a week or so ago, and he supposed that he couldn’t just completely forget about his family and literally move in with Erwin for the remainder of his time there even if he did actually like the idea. As such, they’d gotten there early because Levi wanted to swim, although he was currently perched on top of an inner tube while Erwin hung onto the edge because like always, he preferred to be mostly submerged underneath the water. “You don’t have to help me with anything, Levi. I want you to relax. You’re on vaca—

“No, I want to.” Levi interrupted Erwin before he could say that word, the ‘v’ word, the one that had become almost dirty to him because it never failed to remind him that everything he was doing was fucking temporary. 

“But wouldn’t you rather stay inside?”

Levi bit his lip, and considered it. Sure, staying inside would mean that he’d be able to mostly avoid the views — or lack thereof when it came to land — that made him so nervous, but he could handle being on deck well enough, and even if he wasn’t going to help he wasn’t sure that he would want to just sit inside Erwin’s boat for 12 fucking hours anyway. 

“Nah.” He responded at that thought, and eyed Erwin a bit playfully in the water beside him. “Then I wouldn’t get to watch you walking around in that fucking wetsuit.”

Raising an eyebrow then, Erwin smiled at him, too, moving to idly rub at Levi’s skin with his thumb from where one of his hands was resting just over his knee. He’d been holding onto him there, Levi knew, while they hung out in the water, and had his other arm folded up underneath his chin so he could rest his head on top of the float. “If you just want to see me wearing a wetsuit, Levi, I can put one on at anytime. All you have to do is ask.”

“Yeah? Why don’t you just wear it all the time then?”

“All the time? That’s hardly fair. Maybe I’d like to see you in one too.”

“Yeah, well, I don’t have one. And yours would fall off my ass.”

At that — or at least, at the image, surely — Erwin laughed out loud, the warm, joyful sound of it causing Levi to snort, smile slightly, and tip his head back over the float in that order. He lifted a hand from where he’d been letting it float in the water, too, so that he could place it over Erwin’s head, tangling his fingers in his wet hair while he closed his eyes and let himself relax there for a moment. 

“Anyway.” He continued though, a minute or two later. “What about food, and shit?”

“Food?” Erwin asked, looking at him inquisitively when Levi lifted his head again. 

“Yeah. I mean, for the trip. Do you feed these people, or whatever?”

“Oh. Not really. I have bottled water and emergency snacks, obviously, but usually most people bring their own lunch. It’s too hard for me to prepare anything with everything else I have to do, and then I’d have to buy a bunch of food, so…”

Erwin trailed off, leaving the fact that he didn’t normally have the funds for that unsaid — which was what Levi had expected, and honestly what he’d  _ hoped  _ Erwin had been going to say too, as providing food for his guests was one of the things that Levi had been thinking he could do to help Erwin on their trip. 

“Okay. How about I make some lunch, then? I’ll buy the stuff, and—

“Levi, I told you—

“Listen. I wanna do it. I don’t mind, and it’ll distract me and give me something to do while you’re fucking diving, or whatever. Okay?”

Blinking, Erwin — who had actually been frowning sternly in his attempt to keep Levi from doing any work — stared at him for a moment, his eyes taking in the purposeful, equally serious expression Levi had adopted before he finally smiled slightly, and then sighed. 

“Alright.” He said, chuckling next when Levi, victorious as he was, shifted onto his side a bit so that he could lean over and kiss Erwin on the cheek. “If you insist, I suppose I can’t stop you. But why?”

“Why, what?”

“I mean, why do you want to help so badly? I didn’t think you were overly fond of interacting with strangers like that unless you had to.”

“I’m not, but this way they’ll hopefully give you a big, fat tip.”

“A tip?” Erwin asked, raising his eyebrows as if he hadn’t expected Levi to say that. “They’re already paying me quite a lot as it is. I could probably get by for an entire month from the money I’ll get from this, actually, and that’s even after making up from the expenses I’ll incur taking them out there.”

“I don’t care. You’re taking them out on your fucking house, for fuck’s sake. They  _ better _ give you a good tip.”

Although Erwin looked like he wanted to protest more, whatever he had been about to say died then and was instead just replaced with a warm, soft smile — one that was entirely fond when fixed on him, and which made Levi’s heart flutter wildly in his chest. Clearly, he thought, Erwin was pleased, or touched or something because of his actions, but Levi didn’t think it was a big deal. To him,  it was nothing, because Erwin deserving the tip wasn’t even a question, and why wouldn’t he help him? He wanted to, because Erwin was his boyfriend and he cared about him and his wellbeing, and besides, he had money that he could use to purchase the groceries. 

“Levi.” Erwin said then, voicing his thoughts, Levi suspected, and turning his head a bit so that he could kiss him quickly on the lips. He was still leaned over so he was close enough so that Erwin could do so, and obviously, he allowed it, lingering once he was through and again finding himself having to bite back a smile. “First the lobster, and now this? You’re too good to me.”

“Too good?” Levi repeated, clicking his tongue forcefully at what a  _ ridiculous  _ fucking statement that was — even if he did suspect that Erwin was at least half teasing to flirt with him.

Rolling his eyes all the same as well, Levi kissed Erwin again, holding his gaze as he did so and raising an eyebrow that dared Erwin to argue with him.

“Yes. I’m not sure I deserve you, much less a nice tip.” He said though,  _ of course _ , obviously on purpose to get Levi to huff loudly in mock annoyance. 

That was what he did in response, naturally, because Erwin was full of shit, and the way he chuckled in amusement at Levi’s reaction just made that more apparent. 

“Dumbass.” Levi told him then, just causing him to laugh even more while Levi closed the distance between them again and pressed their lips together. 

This time, the kiss lasted longer than a single second, and because of that and their conversation — or rather, Erwin’s words, because even though Levi considered it insane to think that  _ Erwin  _ didn’t deserve  _ him _ , the way he’d said it like Levi was something special had made him feel warm and flushed with happiness — Levi decided that his place on the inner tube was no longer acceptable. No, he wanted to be closer to Erwin, he thought, in his arms, and because he was leaning over and their combined weight was nearly tipping the float over anyway, it was nothing for him to push Erwin back gently so that he could slip into the water and latch himself onto his torso.

Wrapping his legs around Erwin’s waist — Erwin was submerged up to his neck, so he couldn’t have touched the bottom even if he’d wanted to anyway — and slinging his arms over his shoulders, Levi took advantage of the weightlessness the water gave him and pressed his chest to Erwin’s, again letting the fingers of one hand tangle in the hair at the back of his head. Like that, they kissed again, and Levi hummed happily when Erwin smiled into it and grabbed onto his legs to hold him.

“Why wouldn’t you deserve anything, huh?” Levi continued then, murmuring to him while Erwin began to slowly spin them in a circle inside the water. 

“I don’t know...” He replied, trailing off and causing Levi to raise an eyebrow. “But clearly, I’ll have to make this up to you.”

“Make it up to me? How?” Levi asked, liking the sound of that already, as well as the low, flirtatious tone of voice that Erwin had so very obviously spoken in.

He smiled at Levi, he saw, and then slipped a hand around his ass underneath the water so that he could give it a good, suggestive squeeze, the sensation causing Levi to just tighten his fingers in Erwin’s hair and lean closer so that he could kiss at the corner of his mouth. This time, he barely pulled away even an inch even to speak, continuing to press his lips to his skin in quick pecks as their playful conversation wore on. “I can think of a few things.”

“Like what?”

“Maybe I’ll finish off that massage oil you bought. I still owe you one, after all.”

“Mm, that sounds nice.”

“You’d like that?”

“Yeah. You gonna eat my ass, too?”

Levi was half joking; he’d only said that because it was what  _ he’d _ done to Erwin during the massage he’d given him, and obviously he would be happy with whatever it was that Erwin might decide to do to him. Hell, even just the thought of Erwin giving him a good rub down alone with his big, warm hands was enough to make him nearly shiver in anticipatory delight, however, if Erwin decided to take his words to heart, which would not surprise him at all since he seemed to have some sort of affinity for going down on Levi, then...well, obviously the last thing he would do was complain. 

“How can I say no?” He asked Levi — sure enough — while Levi made a small sound of amusement as he moved his mouth down over Erwin’s neck. “That’s as much of a treat for me as it is you. I like how you taste down there, and the sounds you make. I—

Whatever else Erwin had been about to say in the low tone he’d adopted...well, it was cut off when Levi pressed their lips together suddenly, kissing him in a far more earnest and eager way than the quick, light pecks they’d been sharing before. That had been playful and calm, he thought, but being pressed up against Erwin like this and hearing all this talk about what Erwin might be doing to him in the bedroom later had quickly made him feel hot, hot enough so that he tightened his legs and arms around Erwin and hummed a sound of approval in his throat when Erwin just responded in kind and slipped his tongue inside Levi’s mouth hungrily. 

Having closed his eyes by then, Levi nipped at Erwin’s bottom lip and felt him squeeze his ass again before he reached up to wrap his fingers around the back of Levi’s neck, his firm touch there honestly wanting to make Levi moan like Erwin had said not even a minute ago. Obviously, though, he knew he couldn’t do that, and knew they couldn’t get up to much more than this inside the pool, either, because he wasn’t stupid. He wasn’t that foolish, of course, as his family was in the house, but that didn’t mean they couldn’t make out a little, right? Of course not, Levi knew, but they didn’t get very far before they were suddenly interrupted, first by the sound of flip flops slapping on the concrete near the pool, and then by a loud ‘yahoo!’ and a splash — one that sent a wave of water right over both their heads and had Levi swearing and spluttering as it hit his face within less than a second. 

“Shit!” He shouted, having stopped kissing Erwin, obviously, and knowing already who was to blame for the cannonball and the subsequent disruption. “What the fuck, Kenny?!”

“No canoodlin’ in the pool!” Kenny shouted after he’d resurfaced nearby, using his arm to again try and splash them both, although this time, Erwin, who was still holding Levi, reacted quickly, twisting around in the water to turn his back to Kenny so that he could shield him from the worst of it. 

He looked at him, Levi saw, with an amused smile on his face as he did so — one that came with a sparkle of mirth in his eyes that indicated he was trying to hold back laughter for Levi’s sake, far from being embarrassed or sheepish at having been caught making out with Kenny Ackerman’s nephew. Truth be told, Levi wasn’t either, not really, because...well, it wasn’t the first time that his family had seen them kiss. Erwin had come over enough by then so that it had happened, and anyway, although he hadn’t expressly told any of them, he was pretty sure they had all surmised that they had become a couple. 

More than anything, Levi thought, he was just annoyed by his stupid fucking uncle, but that just turned into disgust a moment later when Uri spoke up and Levi realized he must have followed him out there. 

“Kenny, leave them alone.” He said, throwing a wink in Levi’s direction. “They’re young, and you know we used to—

Groaning to hopefully drown out the rest of  _ that  _ statement, Levi buried his face into Erwin’s neck and listened to him chuckle, trying to focus only on the light kiss Erwin discreetly pressed to the top of his head while he continued to hold him. Like that, they stayed quiet while Kenny blabbered something back to Uri and they talked for a bit, trying, at least on Levi’s part, to somehow magically become invisible in the hopes that his uncles would go away and leave them alone. Why had they come out there, anyway? Just to fuck with them?

Levi knew that was possible because Kenny had appeared first, but apparently, they’d just come to inform them that dinner would be ready soon so they should probably dry off — something that made Levi realize time had somehow greatly gotten away from him. He hadn’t thought it was evening yet, he knew, or that they had been swimming for that long, but he supposed they had and he was starting to get pretty fucking hungry. With that in mind, he climbed out of the pool with Erwin in tow, managing to sneak an eyeful of his ass in clingy, wet swim trunks when he bent over to pick up a nearby towel. 

Biting his lip, he thought about giving it a good smack once his two uncles were out of sight, but thought better of it, deciding that he would just have to do it later, after they had eaten, gone to buy groceries for tomorrow, and headed back to Erwin’s boathouse. That was where Levi was staying the night, of course, since they would be leaving the fucking marina at dawn, and honestly, although it was going to mean truly facing what had once been one of his biggest fears, he was excited about the adventure he would be going on with Erwin. 


	19. Chapter 19

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “This is Levi, my boyfriend.” Erwin said after identifying himself, unable to keep the wide smile from his face as he placed a hand over Levi’s shoulder and drew him close. Sneaking a quick peek down at Levi as he did so, he saw him biting his lip, but lifting a hand all the same to wave at the girls who all smiled and returned the gesture immediately. “He’s going to be helping me out today. He’ll be providing lunch later, and is in charge of food. If you need anything, you can ask him or me.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry for the wait <3

When Erwin’s alarm went off at 4:00 A.M the next morning, the first thing he heard after he’d turned off the loud blaring was Levi’s loud, miserable sounding groan — a noise that was muffled, and that came from somewhere down around his chest and under the blankets. Levi was all but buried under them, Erwin saw, to the point that only the top of his messy bedhead could be seen, and Erwin could feel where he was pressed up against him snugly with his arm and leg draped across his middle. 

Because of that, because he was warm, comfortable, and content, he understood that Levi was complaining about having to get up, and why. It was dreadfully early, and they’d stayed up too late, of course, doing other things in Erwin’s bed besides sleeping, as Erwin did not see any reason why he shouldn’t start paying him back for what Levi was doing for him right away — even if Erwin was still of the opinion that he didn’t have to. He didn’t have to get up yet, either, if he didn’t want, Erwin thought, as the only reason he’d set his alarm this early when the customers were arriving at 6 was because he had to get the boat ready. 

Obviously, Levi wasn’t going to help him with that, but he had insisted on Erwin waking him up at the exact time he did so that he could make them breakfast and keep him company, and although Erwin’s first instinct was to let him rest a bit longer — he looked so cute when he was sleeping, Erwin thought, especially now with how he was practically buried under the bedding — he also suspected that Levi would scold him if he didn’t make sure he got up on time. 

“Levi…” He murmured with that in mind, suppressing a yawn himself as he slid a hand up to gently shake him by the shoulder. “It’s 4.” 

Again, Levi groaned. This time, though, he shifted as well, but only to scoot closer to Erwin and bury himself further underneath the blankets. 

“You told me to wake you up.” Erwin tried again, now moving so that he could card his fingers through Levi’s hair, using his other hand to hold and keep him close even as he spoke about getting up.

“Fuck.” Was Levi’s response to that — something that, because he’d spat the word out so vehemently, immediately made Erwin smile and let out a quiet laugh. 

“I know. I’m sorry.”

“10 more minutes.”

Erwin barely took any time to consider that at all before he agreed. 10 more minutes wasn’t that long, he thought, and to be honest, he wouldn’t mind snoozing with Levi for a bit either. For that reason, he set his alarm again right away and then rolled them both over as gently as he could, wanting to hold Levi that way, from behind, so that he could tuck his knees under Levi’s and bury his face into the back of his hair. Levi, pliant as Erwin had discovered him to always be when he was half-asleep, only moved enough to get comfortable, finding Erwin’s hand with his own, too, before he seemed to almost immediately drift off again. 

Likewise, Erwin swore that he’d  _ just _ closed his eyes when his alarm started going off again, and this time,  _ he  _ was the one to groan, as Levi was making it very difficult for him to get out of bed when he felt so nice in his arms like this and he was so...well,  _ cuddly,  _ as well as warm, and soft, and good smelling from where Erwin’s nose was still pressed against his hair. Unsurprisingly, Erwin had also woken up with a hard-on this time because of all this, but then again, ‘morning wood’ was not uncommon for either of them and so obviously he would just have to ignore it. Besides, they didn’t have time for that anyway, but they would later, and at that point Erwin would be able to cuddle Levi as much as he wanted too, because unfortunately, he now had no choice but to get up.

“Levi.” He murmured again, nuzzling Levi’s neck before he gave him a kiss on the cheek. “It’s been 10 minutes.”

This time, Levi cracked his eyes open, squinting — no glaring, really — straight ahead at one of Erwin’s windows. It was still dark outside, of course, and near pitch black in his room too, which just made getting out of bed all the more difficult, especially when he knew Levi wasn’t used to it. Hell, he wasn’t used to getting up at 4:00 in the morning either, but he could manage once he had a cup of coffee and a shower. Levi he wasn’t so sure about, and so he kissed him again, pressing his lips to Levi’s skin several more times until he finally made a responsive huffing sound and moved a bit to stretch. 

“Tell your dick to go back to sleep.” He mumbled too, obviously in reference to what Erwin had been unable to help from pressing into his back teasingly as he’d kissed him. 

“He can’t.” Erwin replied, slipping a hand up underneath the t-shirt Levi wore to rub at his belly. “I can’t. I have to get up, Levi. If you want to sleep in for a while longer, I don’t mind. Just tell me when—

“No. I’m up. I’m gonna get up, fuck.”

“You don’t have to.”

“I know, but I wanna make breakfast. Lemme up.”

Feeling amused at how Levi was now telling  _ Erwin  _ to let  _ him  _ up as if he hadn’t been trying to get him out of bed all along, Erwin lifted his arm so that Levi could more easily roll out from under it and off the bed, allowing himself to admire how Levi stretched again, catlike, and the accompanying view it gave him of the bottom of his ass and cock before he pulled on some boxer shorts and Erwin finally made himself climb off the mattress. Throwing off the blankets, he followed Levi into the bathroom where they crowded around the tiny sink to brush their teeth, not bothering to dress because he was about to jump into the shower anyway. 

Levi, he knew, would take one after breakfast, but before he went off to start preparing it, he splashed his face with water and then gave Erwin a big kiss and a hug, decidedly looking a  _ little _ more awake now that he’d refreshed himself a bit. Still, his hair was a mess and his face remained reddened from the warmth of the veritable cocoon he’d been lying in, and Erwin had a feeling he was going to go straight for the tea when he entered the kitchen for a dose of caffeine. Sure enough, after Erwin was clean and dressed, he found him sipping a cup of it while babysitting something on the stove — something that Erwin guessed was pancakes because of the smell that he could sense wafting around the room. 

Mixed in with that, though, was also coffee, as Levi had made him a pot even though he didn’t drink it himself because he knew that he would want it. Smiling as he poured himself a large mug, he sat down and kept Levi company while he cooked, doing some things he needed to prepare for the trip that he could accomplish  _ inside  _ the boat, like sorting through a chest for his best pairs of dive goggles and cleaning the mouthpiece parts that were meant to be attached to the air hoses. 

Outside, he had oxygen tanks that he’d taken to be checked and filled the day before tucked away in a compartment beneath the deck, along with fins, booties, gloves, and all the other pieces of equipment that were commonly used to scuba dive. Doing so was a lot more complicated than just snorkeling, he thought, which was part of the reason why he was going to earn so much money for chartering this trip, but it really did feel a lot less...well, burdensome with Levi around even if he was only keeping him company and cooking — at least in theory, because naturally, he ended up helping Erwin get all the supplies out and rearrange his furniture on the deck to prepare for the guests. 

Of course, he didn’t have to, but Erwin did not argue much, as he’d accepted by then that Levi was going to do this for him whether he liked it or not. Because of that, he’d gone from pouting and protesting to just allowing himself to bask in the fact that Levi wanted to, that he cared about him that much, and that he was willing to go out of his comfort zone to spend time with him and the parts of his life that Erwin offered to share with him. All of it gave him a good, happy-go-lucky feeling that he wasn’t particularly used to, really, and he supposed that even that might help him garner a good tip if he was more personable with the guests than he might have been normally. 

Not that he was ever a bad host, but it was easier to be cheerful and friendly when he was already feeling cheerful and friendly — at least as long as his guests weren’t difficult to deal with, anyway. Thankfully, he did not suspect they would be based on the interactions he’d had with them so far over e-mail, and thought they were off to a good start when they arrived right on time, a group of four girls named Rico, Anka, Petra, and Nifa. They were all a bit younger than himself and Levi, he suspected, apparently all college friends who had decided to split a week long vacation to the island as well as a diving excursion. 

Because they were  _ all _ basically of the same age, Erwin hoped that things would be casual and relaxed and maybe even a bit fun if they got along, and thankfully, he thought they got off to a good start towards that when everyone made it onto the boat, accepted a life vest, and introductions began to be made. 

“This is Levi, my boyfriend.” Erwin said after identifying himself, unable to keep the wide smile from his face as he placed a hand over Levi’s shoulder and drew him close. Sneaking a quick peek down at Levi as he did so, he saw him biting his lip, but lifting a hand all the same to wave at the girls who all smiled and returned the gesture immediately. “He’s going to be helping me out today. He’ll be providing lunch later, and is in charge of food. If you need anything, you can ask him or me.”

After all his guests nodded, Erwin explained the rules, because he did have to have some rules for people on board in these types of situations, although mostly for safety reasons. Once that was done and everyone settled, Erwin explained that he would be driving them out to their destination from the bow of the boat, while they could socialize on the main deck they were on now in the back. Levi, he assumed correctly, would be going inside, although he followed Erwin around to the ‘driver’s seat,’ as it were, first, giving him the opportunity to sneak a quick kiss before he started up the boat. 

“Thank you again, for coming with me and helping.” Erwin told him, finding his hand so that he could give it a grateful squeeze too as he smiled.  


“Yeah.” Levi replied, biting his bottom lip again while he eyed the open ocean warily.

“Are you going to go lay down?”

“I dunno. Maybe.”

“What if I come tuck you in?”

At that — Erwin’s teasing, which he accompanied with another kiss — Levi snorted, and paused for a moment as if to consider it before he continued. “I don’t really want to go back to sleep while we’re out there. I might read, or do some shit like that until I can start lunch.”

“Alright. Let me know if you need anything.” Erwin said, watching as Levi nodded and disappeared inside, trying to hide the mild concern he still felt, too, that Levi was going to end up miserable and anxious the entire time they were out at sea. 

He didn’t like the thought of him feeling stuck, or trapped — because he would literally be stuck, and trapped — and had honestly been hoping Levi  _ would  _ take a nap so that he wouldn’t have to worry about him in there, especially considering that it would be awhile before he would have to start cooking. It was only 6:15 by then, he knew, and it would take them at least two hours to get to the first dive spot Erwin had picked out. At that point, the plan was to go ahead and explore the reef underwater for a few hours before lunch, and then after, Erwin would drive about 45 minutes so that they could dive at another good spot for a while before they headed home. 

It sounded simple, but it would be a long day. If Levi ended up sick of this within the first few hours, how was he going to deal with the rest? Would he regret that he’d agreed to help him? Thankfully, Erwin did not have to find out the answers to those questions because things didn’t happen that way — Erwin had been overly insecure about this as usual, it seemed — as it wasn’t even 40 minutes before Levi reappeared outside, sneaking out the nearby door somehow and surprising him by wrapping his arms around Erwin’s neck. He hadn’t heard him coming over the boat’s motor and the sound of the waves, but knew it was him as soon as he saw a flash of movement from the corner of his eye. 

“Levi.” He said, glancing over his shoulder for a second and trying to gauge his mood, as he wouldn’t have necessarily thought he’d come out while Erwin was still driving the boat. “Are you—

“Yeah. I think I’m okay.” Levi replied, despite the fact that his eyes looked a little wide as he stared out at the open ocean. 

They were speeding through it, and Erwin supposed that was also probably the reason that his arms were a bit tight around his neck too. It wasn’t enough to be uncomfortable, obviously, but he noticed it, although he had to smile at how Levi was, as always, seemingly determined to push through it. 

“We should be there in about another hour and 20 minutes or so.” Erwin told him, while Levi moved to rest his chin on top of his head. 

“Okay.”

“Do you know how our guests are doing?”

At that, Levi snorted as if in amusement, affectionately lifting a hand to trail through Erwin’s bangs before he spoke. “Yeah, I’m pretty sure they’re fine. After we left they all put on their bikinis and started sunbathing.” 

“I see.” Erwin chuckled, glad that they were having a good time too so he wouldn’t have to worry about them either.

“I’ll go see if they need anything in a minute.”

“Alright. Try not to charm them too much, Levi. I’d miss you terribly if I were to lose you today.”

“Yeah.” Levi replied, sounding about as dry as he could possibly get. “Shit, you better watch out. I’m a real ladies’ man.”

Obviously, they were both just teasing, and Erwin laughed enough to cause Levi to playfully flick his ear. He kissed his cheek too, though, and lingered like that for a while, watching their surroundings while Erwin drove and operated the boat. Eventually, perhaps 10 minutes later, Levi finally did leave to go check on the girls as he’d said, and although Erwin’s words, of course, about him charming them had been a joke because he was quite sure that Levi did not have a straight bone in his body, when they eventually arrived and he began to make his way towards the other deck, the first thing he heard was Levi’s voice, followed by a round of girlish giggles. Clearly, Erwin thought, Levi was not inside — he’d wondered if he’d gone back in when he didn’t reappear up front — but had he been out there this whole time?

If so, then he and their guests must be getting along fine, and sure enough, when he rounded the corner he saw Levi sitting among them, opposite from the one named Petra who was still laughing at whatever it was that he’d said. 

“Everything alright?” Erwin still asked just in case though, looking them all over before he smiled at Levi and stepped closer. 

“Yeah.” Levi answered, while all the girls nodded. Clearly, Erwin thought, he had sensed correctly that the question was mostly for him. “We found out Petra is from the same city as me.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. We were talking about the subway. I was telling them that you’d probably get lost in it, but...uh, that you know your way around in the water, or whatever.”

“Oh, is that so?”

“Yes.” Petra answered, piping up perhaps because Levi had pointedly looked away to stare out sternly at the water. “Levi said that if we wanted a good dive tour, we picked the best guy for the job. He said that everyone on the island always recommends you because you’re an expert, and you’ll show us a bunch of cool stuff and we’ll really get our money’s worth.”

Erwin had to smile. Clearly, he thought, Levi had been gassing him up probably in the hopes that it would help him get that ‘big, fat tip’ he wanted for him, because everything Petra had repeated back to him, at least in his mind, was an exaggeration or not even actually true. He wasn’t aware of anyone on the island recommending him, and he was far, far from considering himself an expert on diving. Still, the way Levi was now biting his lip and blushing — as he continued to look at anything but him like he was embarrassed — suggested to Erwin that he really had meant some of it, and either way, he appreciated his words and what he was trying to do. He also liked how it made his heart flutter warmly to think that Levi had been saying good things about him regardless, and he knew it was just one more thing that he was going to have to thank him for later. 

“Well,” He said though, because he couldn’t exactly in good faith tell the girls that what Levi said was right. “I’m not sure about all of that, but I am going to show you as much as possible. If at any time you’re dissatisfied with the tour, please go ahead and let me know.”

At that, Levi finally looked over at him again. He got up, too, and moved to hand him the key to the compartment where he kept his dive equipment — Erwin had given it to him earlier to hold onto — and while he was close, Erwin could not resist wrapping an arm around his shoulders before he could step away. Quickly, he bent to give him a kiss on the forehead too, honestly not caring in the least that there were others around or that Levi might become flustered. He could handle it, Erwin thought. He had to thank Levi for what he’d said somehow, right?

“We’ve arrived at the first diving location.” He continued then, vaguely noticing at how some of the girls smiled — particularly Petra and Nifa — while watching them interact. “So if you’d like to put on your wetsuits, I can start handing out the diving gear.”

Upon hearing his instructions, there was a small flurry of movement on deck as all his guests got up to do as he’d asked. Taking the key from Levi, he walked around with him to where the compartment was and began pulling things out. Luckily for him, once he began handing it off, he discovered that the two older girls, Rico and Anka, had gone diving before, which made his job a bit easier because they had experience. Petra and Nifa, on the other hand, were new to this, but they seemed sharp and they listened intently to everything he said while they were getting ready. 

Eventually, about 30 minutes after they’d arrived and all the girls had been briefed on the do’s and don'ts of diving, Erwin was ready to lead them into the water — although he didn’t dare proceed before he also reminded Levi of the things they’d talked about regarding what to do in case of an emergency, or how to operate certain things on the boat if anything happened with them while he was underwater. 

“The emergency beacon is here, remember.” Erwin told him once more, just in case, back near the bow with Levi while the girls waited on the opposite deck. 

“Yeah, I got it.” Levi replied, worrying at his lip a little, Erwin noticed, while he stared at it and seemed to think. Was he nervous about staying up there by himself? That was what Erwin assumed at first, but then Levi glanced up at him and pulled him down a bit roughly for a kiss — one that lasted for at least a minute before he pulled away and continued. “Don’t get fucking eaten down there, okay?”

_ Oh. _ Erwin thought. Levi must have been worried about him being under the water, because of the sharks. 

“I won’t, Levi.” He said, trying not to chuckle when he felt like it because he didn’t want Levi to think he was making light of his concerns. 

After all, it did make him feel good that Levi was looking out for his safety, and so he just smiled softly instead of anything else, pulling him in for a hug while Levi wrapped his arms around his middle. 

“Promise?” He asked, his voice sounding muffled now against his chest. 

“I promise. I’ll be back up here before you know it, okay?”

“Okay. I’m gonna read out here, and then I’ll cook, or whatever.”

“Alright.” 

For a moment, Erwin lingered, rubbing at Levi’s back as if to comfort him and hoping that he wasn’t just going to sit up there and worry. Then, though, his concerning thoughts were interrupted when Levi suddenly moved one of his hands to pinch him on the ass as hard as he could — no doubt because he was in the wetsuit and Levi had teased him about this the day before. Still, Erwin jerked away even as he laughed, partly because it had surprised him, and partly because...well, it  _ stung _ . Snorting at his behavior, Levi shook his head and then gave Erwin one last kiss before they made their way back to where the girls were waiting, and after everyone had safely made it into the water, Erwin poked his head out of it to give Levi a wave before finally disappearing underneath it. 


	20. Chapter 20

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Levi?” He asked, after Levi had bitten his lip and glanced away. “Is something wrong?”
> 
> “No. I mean...I—
> 
> “What is it?”
> 
> Pausing for a moment while he wrestled with his emotions, Levi finally just gave up and let out a sigh, deciding that there was no point in keeping his mouth shut about this now. 
> 
> “Nothing. I just...I don’t wanna fucking go home, you know?” He muttered then, tightening his fingers into the clothing Erwin had on as if to demonstrate how much he didn’t want to leave him.

Being on Erwin’s boat without Erwin, Levi thought, was weird. Things were quiet as soon as everyone disappeared under the water, and for a few long moments he just stood there, suddenly feeling almost  _ painfully  _ alone as he gazed down into what he considered to be a deep, dark abyss. The fact that the vessel had been filled with much chattering and laughter from the girls and Erwin’s rich, soothing baritone not even a minute ago — along with clinking and rustling and other sounds from their gear — did not help when all he heard now was silence, nor did the seemingly unending views of ocean and sky that he had in almost every single direction. 

When facing east he thought he saw a dark speck moving on the horizon, but even if he knew that it was probably another boat, it was so far away that it didn’t matter. Whatever, though. He didn’t think he was about to panic, or anything, but it was just...odd, probably because he still hadn’t gotten used to spending time out on a relatively tiny, floating vessel miles away from land. To him, it was a novelty and he was, of course, not entirely comfortable there, but if he was being honest, he was more concerned for Erwin than he was himself, as the thought of him being someplace he was already afraid of was not a great one. 

He didn’t like that he was out of sight down there, he thought, many, many feet under the water — Erwin had explained to him it was rather shallow there for being so far out because of the reef, but he didn’t care — with limited mobility and, of course, fucking oxygen in a tank. What if it sprang a leak? What if he got swept away by a current? What if he really, honestly did get attacked by a goddamn shark? Despite the fact that usually when Levi said that he did understand that the odds of such a thing actually happening were very low, he could not help the voice in the back of his mind that always said ‘what if,’ telling him that it was always possible himself or Erwin would be the 1 person in the world that day who got bit by a ferocious sea creature.

Still, though, Erwin had done this before. He’d done it over 2 dozen times, in fact, which meant he was skilled and experienced. Because of that, he really hadn’t felt like he’d been lying when he’d bragged about him to the girls even if he didn’t know firsthand, as he didn’t think Erwin would be getting any business, in his opinion, if he fucking sucked. That being said, he had promised to help him with the job that day, and if he wanted to do that, he couldn’t sit there and fret about things that would probably never happen to his boyfriend underwater. With that in mind, he made himself go check to see if everything was ready for him to start cooking later, and then sat on the deck so that he could keep an eye on most of the boat and his surroundings.

Only then did he read like he’d told Erwin he was going to do, and once he got into the book a bit and put his feet up, he did have to admit that it was a bit relaxing out there even if he was out in the middle of the ocean. There was a nice breeze and the sound of the waves gently splashing against the boat’s hull actually proved to be rather calming when it just became background noise, and he stayed like that until it was time for him to start cooking lunch. He had a lot to do, he thought, but first, he made fresh lemonade. Then, he prepared a salsa — one made out of diced mango, among several other things — to go on the fish he’d bought too, as he was planning on making tacos and he knew the flavors would pair well together inside the tortillas. 

By the time that was done, he went out and began to heat up Erwin’s grill, getting out the fish so that he could again coat it in lime juice and salt and pepper. It wouldn’t take very long to cook, he knew, so he also stayed on the deck before that to place some plates and things on Erwin’s outdoor table, as that was where he planned to lay everything out so that their guests could fix their own tacos. At that point, it was time to start cooking the fish, and although he’d felt a bit stressed about timing everything right, once he was done and had brought it inside to rest for a few moments, he heard splashing outside and the sound of Erwin’s voice. 

Ridiculously, Levi could not help the way that he practically burst onto the deck and threw himself at the railing, as for a moment, he felt almost desperate to confirm that Erwin had returned safe even while he was also sure that he had. Of course, he was correct, too, because as soon as he stepped outside he saw Erwin and the girls bobbing in the water, some of them with their face masks off and swimming towards the boat already. 

“Levi!” Erwin shouted, waving at him with a smile after he’d taken the breathing apparatus out of his mouth and removed his mask too. “Everything alright?”

“Yeah.” Levi said back, moving so that he could help the girls climb the ladder and get back onto the boat one by one. 

Naturally, Erwin let them go first and was the last one up, taking Levi’s hand when he offered it to him, though, and giving it a warm squeeze once he was finally onboard before he bent to sneak a quick kiss.

“How are you?” He asked, looking quite adorable, honestly, as he stood there, dripping wet in his scuba gear with his hair a mess behind his mask. 

The water made the silky strands look dark blonde while droplets of it sparkled on his face in the sunlight, and after looking at the ridiculously beautiful visage for a moment, Levi bit his lip and told him Erwin he was okay, but glad that he hadn’t been eaten alive down there or anything while he’d been on the boat waiting. 

“Want some lemonade?” He asked too, which was a question that made Erwin smile again and nod eagerly. 

“Yes, please.” He answered, apparently unable to resist grabbing Levi’s arm before he walked away so that he could plant another kiss on his cheek. 

He watched him, too, while Levi went to pour him a drink, even as he removed some of his gear — he was going to have to drive again, after all — and took the tank off to get more comfortable. Although Levi couldn’t be sure why, of course, he found that it made him feel warm, especially once he realized that the dive had put Erwin into an extra cheerful mood. He must have had fun, Levi thought, which was good, and as he brought him his lemonade, he could sense that the girls had too, as they were all chatting excitedly amongst themselves about everything that they had seen. 

“How was it?” Levi still asked Erwin, though, watching as he chugged the entire beverage in what seemed like one huge gulp.

“That’s delicious.” He said before answering Levi’s question, licking his lips while he gave him another smile and continued. “It was great. We saw a lot of wildlife, and I think they enjoyed it.”

“Yeah. Sounds like it.” Levi replied, glancing over at him while raising an eyebrow, sneakily rubbing his thumb over his fingertips, too — a sign that meant  _ money  _ — while hoping on the inside that this might mean they really would give Erwin the good tip he wanted for him so badly. 

Of course, he hoped to help with that by feeding them, and with that in mind, he was immensely glad to see that lunch was a hit, both with Erwin and the girls, who immediately swarmed the table and devoured it all quickly. They thanked him for the food and Erwin made sure to let him know he was grateful and that it was delicious by sneaking him kisses when no one was looking, right up until it was time for them to depart again for the second diving location. While Erwin was navigating Levi sat with their guests, earning many laughs — not that he was trying to, but apparently they found his deadpan way of speaking and stupid quips funny — and an offer from Petra to hang out the next time she was in the city. 

Pausing when she asked, Levi felt surprised but then found that he didn’t mind the thought, as she was pretty easy to talk to, and seemed nice enough and like someone he wouldn’t  _ hate  _ being around if it actually did end up happening. As such, he accepted the offer and couldn’t help but feel a little cheered at the thought that he might have made a new friend — he wasn’t good at it, after all — and supposed it was just one more thing he would have to thank Erwin for later. Before that, though, he had to babysit the boat again while Erwin returned to the water, finding that this time, amazingly enough, he was even more at ease onboard by himself than the first time around. 

Even so, he was still glad to see him resurface and rushed over to the railing again to help him climb back up, but managed to keep him company outside during the entire journey back home — a far cry from the first time he’d ridden on Erwin’s boat and had been too uneasy to leave the cabin. It still wasn’t the most relaxing thing he’d ever done in his life, he thought, but he did sort of like watching them get closer and closer to shore once land finally came into view. At that point, he’d stood up to wrap his arms around Erwin’s neck, and stayed that way while he slowed down, enjoying how familiar landmarks gradually appeared as they entered the bay and eventually the opening that led to Erwin’s marina. 

Once parked, Levi went back to check on the girls and found them all up and about with their things mostly packed in preparation to go. They were all pretty tired, they admitted, but obviously it was understandable, because he felt a bit worn out too and he hadn’t even gotten up to as much physical activity as everyone else had, including Erwin. As such, he planned on lazing around for the rest of the night and had no doubt that Erwin did too, although he did experience a burst of internal excitement when the girls presented their thanks and appreciation to Erwin in the form of a $60 tip before they left — quite a lot, and even more than Levi had expected despite the nice lunch. 

“You got it.” Levi said once they were gone, unable to stop himself from throwing his arms around Erwin’s neck to hug him as if in congratulations. 

“Yes.” Erwin replied, catching him around the waist and smiling, Levi saw, but fondly at him rather than the money, which he still held folded in his right hand after having been practically forced by the girls to take it. “It’s thanks to you, though.”

“That’s bullshit. You did all the work, and took them underwater. They had a good time, I could tell.”

“Well...do you want to split it? You still helped, and bought all those groceries.”

At Erwin’s words, Levi could not help the way he stepped back to stare at him dumbfoundedly. Was he fucking serious? Hadn’t they already gone over this? Levi was pretty sure they had, and so he scoffed and asked Erwin if he was joking — even while knowing that he wasn’t — before he took the money from Erwin’s hand and shoved it right into a drawer himself. After that, he clicked his tongue at Erwin and told him to keep his money, and decided that it was high time for him to get back into comfortable clothes so that he could relax. He’d done all the real work, Levi thought again, and was clearly pretty beat, and as such, Levi helped him out of his wetsuit so that Erwin could climb into the shower. 

Although he enjoyed peeling the thing off his body quite a bit, Levi left Erwin to wash so that he could go cook again, having already decided that he would prepare something quick for them both so that Erwin wouldn’t have to do anything else. With that in mind, he fixed them a plate of grilled cheese sandwiches that they ate on the deck together, remaining there for another hour or so just leisurely drinking beers and relaxing while they looked out to sea and watched the sunset. 

“Thank you for your help today, Levi.” Erwin murmured to him eventually, bringing up the hand he’d been holding to his lips so that he could give his fingers another kiss. 

He smiled, and sounded so sincere while looking equally beautiful under the orangey glow from the sky that it made Levi’s chest ache, also causing him to feel such a strong yearning for Erwin that he couldn’t come up with any words to answer him. Suddenly, all he could think about was how he didn’t want to leave him, how he wanted to remain there and stay at his side, as after all, it was all too easy to imagine himself sticking around with Erwin on the island instead of going home so that they could live their lives together, perhaps even doing what they had done that day  _ all  _ of the time. He could help Erwin with his business there like that, right? 

Yes, it hadn’t been something he’d mind doing long term, he already knew, and the idea of adapting to the slow, leisurely pace of life there — so much different than the bustling, stressful one of the city — sounded amazing and far, far better than leaving to go home. Unfortunately, though, he knew he couldn’t just give the things he had back there up like that. He had university to finish, and no matter how much his heart told him that he would be alright if he decided to stay on a whim, deep down he knew that it was probably stupid this early on in their relationship, and that it wasn’t time to take such a huge step, not yet. 

Still, it was tempting, so, so tempting that it threatened to make the ever present melancholy that always came with thoughts of going home even worse, and although he tried to ignore it, he swallowed and leaned his head on Erwin’s shoulder while the seconds ticked by,  _ knowing  _ that each one brought him closer and closer to the day where he would have to leave Erwin behind.  

For that reason, he found himself taken aback more than he normally might have been when Erwin suddenly chose that moment to present him with a gift, one that he went to go retrieve from across the deck after he’d shifted suddenly to move in his chair. 

“I almost forgot.” He murmured too, standing up while Levi lifted his head to watch him, noticing as he did so how Erwin made a beeline for the bag that he’d taken down diving with him. All of them had carried one, Levi knew, for collecting seashells or whatever, but he hadn’t really thought about the fact that Erwin might have brought anything up with him until now. “I found something for you.”

“Huh?” Levi asked, raising an eyebrow while Erwin walked back over with a small smile. 

Sticking his hand inside the bag, he sat down again and pulled out what Levi immediately realized was a large seashell of the scalloped variety, one that he saw was almost as big as his hand once he reached out and Erwin placed it into his palm. It was beautiful, he thought right away, mostly colored in different shades of pink as well as a bit of white, and in near perfect condition, so much so that it almost looked like the kind that you could find in a tourist shop — something that obviously made it amazing that Erwin had been lucky enough to find it.

“It’s not much.” Erwin continued though, while Levi looked at the shell. “But I thought it would go with the conch we found. I snatched it up before any of the girls could see it, I admit.”

Although Levi had to bite back a smile at that — the thought of Erwin sneakily pocketing a seashell for him was pretty funny — it did not stop him from experiencing a wave of emotion so strong that he suddenly found himself having to swallow down a lump in his throat and blink away a few burgeoning tears. Obviously, it was because he’d just been thinking about how much he didn’t want to fucking leave Erwin, how miserable it made him feel just to think about it, and even if Erwin had meant well and Levi did like the shell, he knew the gift was supposed to be a souvenir, or something for him to take home that would remind him of the time they’d spent together on the island. 

Still, it  _ was  _ sweet and he  _ did _ feel touched that Erwin had thought of him while he’d been diving and wanted to give him a gift, and so he forced himself to focus on that, turning the shell over a few times in his hand until he’d gotten control of his emotions — mostly because he didn’t want Erwin to think that he didn’t appreciate what he’d just given him.

“Uh...thanks.” He uttered with that in mind, swallowing before he carefully set the shell down on the nearby table before he turned to give Erwin a hug. Leaning over their chairs, he wound his arms around his neck as best he could and gave him a quick kiss, hoping that it would show his gratefulness because he would probably feel guilty for an entire week if he did anything to wipe the gorgeous smile Erwin was wearing off his handsome face. “Thanks, Erwin. It’s nice, and I really fucking like it. I’ll put it with the other one when I...when I get home.”

Because Levi had pressed his face into the crook of Erwin’s neck, Erwin did not see the way he had to squeeze his eyes shut to combat the pang of sadness he felt when he mentioned going home. Still, despite himself, despite everything, he could not help but snort incredulously at the shit that came out of Erwin’s mouth next.

“Now you’ll have two shells to remember me by instead of just one.” He murmured, reaching up to grasp Levi’s cheek so that he could fix him with a playful look when Levi lifted his head again. 

“Yeah.” He scoffed in response, leaning into the touch, naturally, and using his own fingers to grab onto Erwin’s hand. “Because that’s the only thing I’ll remember you for. Fucking seashells.”

Chuckling, Erwin kissed him once, lingering, before he pulled back and brushed away a strand of Levi’s hair. “What else will you remember me for, then?”

“Everything.” Levi replied right away, opening his mouth to say more but stopping himself in the next second, though, as this was all just continuing to remind him of how much he was going to fucking miss his boyfriend. 

What  _ wouldn’t _ he remember him for, he thought? His gentleness, his smile, the way he looked at Levi and held him at night and made him feel like the most precious thing in the world? No, those were all things — among hundreds of others — that he suspected he would long for nearly every second of everyday without Erwin, and although Levi wanted to tell him that, he wasn’t sure that he could right then, or that he should. Obviously, part of that was because he struggled to communicate shit like that in general sometimes, but mostly it was because it hurt his heart, and he didn’t want to bring the mood down when Erwin seemed happy. It wasn’t time for shit like that, he thought, not yet, because they still had sort of a while left and they’d promised each other not to focus on it.

Unfortunately, though, regardless of his resolve, this time it seemed that Levi failed to hide his melancholy like he had before, as Erwin suddenly appeared to notice something in his expression and fixed him with a frown.

“Levi?” He asked, after Levi had bitten his lip and glanced away. “Is something wrong?”

“No. I mean...I—

“What is it?”

Pausing for a moment while he wrestled with his emotions, Levi finally just gave up and let out a sigh, deciding that there was no point in keeping his mouth shut now. He wasn’t going to lie to Erwin, he thought, and...well, the need for comfort, which Erwin clearly wanted to give him, was not something he could ignore for long. Slumping against Erwin again, Levi rested his head back on his shoulder and breathed in his smell, knowing as he did so that it was just one more thing he would miss once he was gone, that he would remember Erwin for, too, as he planned to steal  _ at least _ one of his shirts when he left.

“Nothing. I just...I don’t wanna fucking go home, you know?” He muttered then, tightening his fingers into the clothing Erwin had on now as if to demonstrate how much he didn’t want to leave him.

At that, it was Erwin’s turn to pause, as he actually seemed to freeze up beneath Levi before he remained quiet for a very, very long time. In reality, it was only around 5 seconds, but his prolonged silence was enough for Levi to start to fret that he’d said the wrong thing, or that Erwin didn’t want to talk about this at all and he’d upset him worse than he’d thought he might. Then, though, then he heard Erwin swallow thickly and felt him let out a breath — one that was followed up by him reaching out to cup the back of Levi’s head so that he could quickly kiss his temple. 

“I don’t want you to go either.” He murmured then, sliding fingers into Levi’s hair and sounding sadder than Levi had ever heard him. “I try not to think about it, but it’s hard. Mostly because...well, I’m so used to having you around now that I...that I don’t really know what I’m going to do without you.”

_ Fuck, _ Levi thought at that.  _ Shit. _ How was he supposed to remain calm now? Sure, Erwin’s words were sweet, in a way, and he knew he should perhaps feel relieved that Erwin was as affected by this as he was, but the way he’d said it, all vulnerable and almost helpless sounding when he was normally so strong and sure, was enough for Levi to honestly feel like his heart was going to break. Immediately, his eyes stung again with the sudden welling of tears — tears that he thankfully managed to blink away after a second like before — and immediately, he shook his head, lifting it so that he could meet Erwin’s gaze with what he  _ hoped  _ was a somewhat reassuring expression. 

“No, you’ll be fine.” He said, aware of how his voice sounded a bit strained and watery as he spoke. “Don’t say that shit. You were okay without me before.”

“Yes, I know. It just won’t be the same. You make me very happy, Levi, and I’ll miss you.” 

“...Me too, Erwin. I feel the same way, and I  _ already  _ fucking miss you. I—

“But you’re right, Levi: it’ll be okay. It will be hard at first, but we’ll make it.”

“Yeah.” Levi agreed, obviously because he did not  _ dare  _ think of anything else, not right then.

“We’ll talk every day, and Skype like I said. Remember?” Erwin continued, clearly trying to sound soothing, Levi thought, even though he could tell that this was hard for him too. 

For that reason, Levi shifted to wrap his arms around his neck again, trying to hug him as best he could in this position before he answered. 

“Yeah, Skype.”

“And when you leave, it won’t be goodbye forever. I won’t let it be. I’ll figure something out.”

“Yeah…I mean, if I can come back, I will. I’m sure Uri would let me stay at his house next summer even if they don’t fucking come.”

“Well, if you come back, I’d rather you stay with me.” Erwin said to that, speaking with a small, sly smile on his face that  _ thankfully  _ met his eyes.

Scoffing, but then biting his lip because Levi had, of course, thought about that and would prefer it, he hadn’t wanted to assume. Either way, though, the idea of coming back next summer — while being something he’d pondered before — was a nice one, and he really did have a fair amount of hope that it would be workable. Surely, he knew, he would be able to save up enough money for at least a plane ticket by then, right?

“That sounds amazing, though.” Erwin continued. “Why don’t we plan on it? I can help you with money if needed—

“No—

“And set up the boat to better occupy two. This way, we’ll have something to look forward to. How does that sound?”

“Pretty fucking good.” Levi answered immediately, because...well, it did. “I wanna come.”

“Alright. Then I’ll plan on having you here next summer.” Erwin replied, smiling again and shifting so that he could press his forehead to Levi’s gently. “I can’t wait, Levi.”

Pausing at that, Levi bit his lip while he considered Erwin’s words, while, for some reason, his eyes watered again briefly with a few tears. Like before, he blinked them away and managed to control the swell of emotion, but it was just hard, hard when — although he was happy that Erwin wanted him to come back and seemed glad that he’d agreed to — he knew that even if they had plans to see each other again it wouldn’t happen again for a long time. Still, he felt that Erwin’s words about having something to look forward to rang true, as he could already tell that leaving with  _ at least _ an idea of when they might see each other again would be a tiny bit less painful than leaving with everything still up in the air, even  _ if  _ he dreaded having to wait an entire fucking year to do so. 

Whatever though, he thought. He should just be relieved that Erwin was willing to have a long distance relationship with him like he had been when they’d first talked about it, happy that he had found someone who cared about him that much and that he had a boyfriend as amazing as Erwin in the first place. Besides, he still had a handful of weeks left, right? Even if he’d let himself get downcast for a bit there, he was determined not to dwell on it and make himself miserable for the entire rest of the trip. That would be shitty and Erwin didn’t deserve that, and he knew they had basically promised each other before that they would make the most of their time there together so that they’d have good memories. 

All in all, Levi felt they had done that pretty well. Still, though, that didn’t mean he wanted to let their remaining time go to waste, and would rather focus on making it even more special than everything else had been already. But how? For a moment, he wasn’t sure, but an idea would eventually come to him — one that, if he could manage it, would make Erwin happy, and that would just be one more thing he hadn’t ever expected to happen to him when he’d departed for his vacation.


	21. Chapter 21

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Ready, Levi?” Erwin asked, from where he stood ankle deep in the surf about a few feet away from his boyfriend.
> 
> They were at the beach, a public one about 15 minutes away from the marina that Erwin knew to be one of the nicer ones, and they were about to take a swim, a real swim, he thought, instead of just wading into the water for a few minutes to look for seashells.

“Ready, Levi?” Erwin asked, from where he stood ankle deep in the surf about a few feet away from his boyfriend. 

They were at the beach, a public one about 15 minutes away from the marina that Erwin knew to be one of the nicer ones, and they were about to take a swim, a  _ real  _ swim, he thought, instead of just wading into the water for a few minutes to look for seashells. Of course, it had been Levi’s idea, or rather, planned at his insistence after the talk they'd had aboard his boat once they’d gotten back from the diving trip a few days ago. He’d seemed to have gotten a bit upset, Erwin remembered, about leaving which had nearly gotten him choked up as well, he had to admit, as he hadn’t been lying when he’d said he failed not to think about it all the time. 

No, he dreaded the day that Levi would go, he knew, to the point that he often fell asleep gazing at Levi’s already slumbering expression with a preemptive ache in his heart. It would be awful and heartbreaking and he honestly believed Levi would be taking a piece of himself with him, because he had fallen for him to the point that he didn’t think he would be whole alone. He didn’t understand it, really, how he could have such strong feelings for a man who he had, by then, only known for just over two months, but he did, and he didn’t want to think about how devastatingly lonely he was going to be without him. Of course, he had only expressed the basics of all of that to Levi because...well, he had only recently started to fully understand and figure out what all of this meant. 

He wasn’t sure how to tell him yet, but as such, he had found himself feeling a deep, wavering melancholy even after they’d finished their conversation and decided that Levi would come stay with him next summer — something that did make Erwin happy, and that he hoped very much would come true — one that was mostly born out of guilt, guilt that stemmed from the fact that it was his idiotic gift that had caused Levi to become down like that in the first place. If he hadn’t given him the shell, he believed, and mentioned it as a souvenir, then he wouldn’t have necessarily been reminded right then about going home. He hadn’t been thinking, he admonished himself, when he’d picked it up for him, but...he had really only wanted to show Levi what kinds of amazing things could come from down below. 

_ “I’m sorry if my gift upset you, Levi.” _ He’d told him later that night, still thinking about it and seeking to explain himself after they had finally crawled into bed, exhausted from their trip, and cuddled up together under the sheets. 

_ “Huh?”  _ Levi replied, though, twisting a bit, from where he’d been lying on his side with Erwin pressed up behind him, so that he could look at him with drawn brows and a slightly confused expression. 

_ “The shell. I didn’t mean to make you think about going home earlier. I’m sorry. I _ —

_ “Hey. What the fuck are you talking about? That wasn’t your fault.” _

_ “But _ —

_ “Erwin.”  _ Levi had said then, uttering his name firmly as he rolled over so that he could face him. Reaching out, he’d placed a hand on his arm, eyeing the surely forlorn expression Erwin wore on his face with disapproval before he shook his head.  _ “I liked the shell. It’s nice, and I...I do want shit like that to take home. I was already thinking about how I didn’t want to leave though, so it wasn’t because of that. You didn’t do anything wrong, so don’t say shit like that. Got it?” _

In the face of Levi’s reassurance, his sincerity and earnestness and the way he almost seemed offended that Erwin would think he’d messed up by giving him a gift, Erwin had honestly nearly been stunned into speechlessness. He’d moved to lie on his back and stared for a moment, his heart twinging, while Levi did the same and then leaned over to kiss the corner of his mouth — a gesture that then caused Erwin to finally smile before he reached out to take Levi’s hand. 

_ “Well, perhaps I should have thought more about it.”  _ He’d still said though, bringing Levi’s fingers up to his lips and continuing before he could protest further.  _ “It’s just...I want you to have something to remember me by like I said, but…” _

_ “But what?” _

_ “While I was down there, I kept thinking about how beautiful it was. It always is, and I wanted someway to show you. I thought with the shell, I could.” _

Although Erwin hadn’t said that with the intention to pressure Levi into anything, he’d practically been able to see the gears turning in his head after he’d spoken. His lips parted, Erwin saw, and his eyes unfocused, remaining that way even as his gaze drifted and after Erwin reached up to touch his jaw. 

_ “Levi, I _ —

_ “If I get in the water and swim...does that mean I’d be able to dive, or whatever?” _ Levi had asked, turning back to Erwin while biting his lip and looking adorably earnest. 

Still, Erwin had not meant to put that thought into his head, and he barely restrained a sigh at himself, at how in his attempt to explain something he’d felt he’d messed up on, he’d inevitably just done so all over again. _ “Technically, Levi, but— _

_ “Then I wanna swim.”  _ Levi interrupted, now appearing so determined — and oddly, like he was holding back a smile — that Erwin was left with his mouth hanging open before he responded.

_ “You don’t have to. That wasn’t why I was saying that.” _

_ “Erwin.”  _ Levi huffed, drawing his brows down even as his eyes brightened.  _ “Shit, don’t you get it? If you want to fucking show me, I want to fucking see it. Let’s just do it, before I leave.” _

Thus, there they were, at the beach for Levi’s first foray into the ocean in what had been almost 10 years. He was anxious, Erwin could tell, and understandably so — something that threatened to make Erwin feel guilty all over again for how this had come about. Sure, he did love the idea of swimming with Levi like this and showing him how much fun they could have in the sea, but it had never been his intent to convince him to do so or pressure him, especially when Levi had already gone out of his comfort zone enough for him by spending so much time with Erwin on his boat. 

Even that was more than he should have asked for, he thought, but Levi had apparently set his mind to it and there was no unconvincing him now. That night, he’d further declared that his discomfort in the water was stupid anyway, and that he was missing out, and that he wanted to do it with Erwin because it would be special and because he wanted to ‘see everything’ that ‘he liked and shit,’ which Erwin eventually understood to mean in Levi speak that it was important for him to experience the parts of Erwin’s life that made him happy. He wanted Erwin to share that with him, and although he still knew that part of it had to be because Levi knew he would like that — which was true, he would, but he also understood why Levi wouldn’t want to — he supposed, in the end, that it  _ was  _ just a normal part of being in a relationship. 

After all, if he were to visit Levi in the city, he knew, he would want to see and hear and experience all the things that were a part of Levi’s life there. Still, he just wanted Levi to know that he didn’t have to go swimming with him no matter what, but he was curious too, Erwin noted. He could tell, and so after Levi convinced him to not worry about it, he focused more on the excitement he felt at the thought that he was going to be able to theoretically take him diving — or rather, snorkeling, because that was a lot easier and safer and they would not even have to go that far from shore to do so, which was good, because it meant it would be more simple to...well, escape from if Levi got scared. 

He was a bit, Erwin could tell. Scared, that is. He hid it well but he’d been tense all morning, and he was now glaring at the ocean waves washing up on the shore as if they had offended him personally. Although it was clearly not enough fear to make him panic or anything like that, Erwin knew, he was still nervous, and probably thinking about sharks and man eating fish and all the things that could be out there waiting to — in his mind — attack him in the water. For that reason, Erwin thought about telling him again that they could go home if he wanted, but knew it would just make Levi scowl because he was anything if not determined.

He was brave too, Erwin thought, and amazing, and so instead of that, then, he decided that he would be better off encouraging him, and offered him what he hoped was a reassuring smile, holding out his hands when Levi glanced up at him.

“It’s alright, Levi.” He said, speaking softly. “The waves are calm today, and there won’t be any sharks. Remember what I said about the safety net?” 

“Yeah.” Levi replied then, biting his lip and looking past Erwin at what he was referring to: the buoys that held an underwater netting between them that kept out anything bigger than his arm. 

“Come here, then. We’ll walk out together, and if you want to go back at any point we can.”

“...okay.” 

Watching Levi nod, Erwin saw him very obviously take a deep breath next, swallowing and clenching his fists afterward before he abruptly strode forward as fast as he could to approach Erwin in the water. Although he was still holding out his hand for him, he ended up with Levi, who ignored it, pressed up against his chest instead, his face buried there while he wrapped his arms around him to hold on tightly. 

“Levi.” Erwin had to chuckle then. “We’re only ankle deep. You’ve been out a lot farther than that already, remember?”

Somewhere below his chin, Erwin heard a loud sigh. “Yeah, I know. Fuck, just gimme a minute.”

Erwin murmured an ‘alright’ and gave Levi a minute, obviously moving to hug him back too and rub at his shoulder blades encouragingly. Eventually, after a bit of just standing there, listening to the waves crash behind him and a group of children laughing and splashing nearby, he felt Levi shift, unwinding his arms and stepping back a bit so that he could finally take Erwin’s hand.

“Alright, let’s go.” He said too, now looking so determined that he almost appeared angry.

Naturally, though, Erwin just felt his heart sing while watching him, and he couldn’t help but smile as he tightened his fingers around Levi’s and began to lead him out. 

“I won’t let go of you, okay?” He told him, squeezing his palm while Levi nodded resolutely beside him. “I won’t let anything happen to you, I promise. If something does, I’ll save you and swim you to shore, remember?”

Although he was teasing — he had said that exact thing to Levi before their first fishing trip to flirt with him — he meant it. He would never forgive himself if something happened to Levi, and planned to do everything in his power to make sure he was comfortable and safe while in the water. Still, he was happy to hear Levi snort and tease him back, something that showed he wasn’t as anxious about this as he possibly could be.

_ “My hero.” _ He said dryly, speaking with an obvious note of sarcasm that...well, that fell flat when he abruptly shouted and launched himself into Erwin’s side so hard that he nearly toppled over. 

“Shit!” Levi yelled loudly, clearly startled by something that Erwin could not yet fathom — at least while he was stumbling a bit, turning, and trying to pull Levi up against his chest to protect him on instinct all at the same time.

“ _ Levi _ —

“Something touched my fucking leg!” 

“Wait!”

“What the fuck was that?!”

“Hold on, I’ve got you.” Erwin said then, having caught his balance and also Levi, now pausing to look over his shoulder while he held onto him tightly. “It’s alright. It’s just a piece of seaweed. Look, right there.”

Somehow, although Erwin was now nearly shaking with laughter at what had just happened, he sounded calm and soothing — at least until Levi saw what he was talking about and turned back around to glance up at him. At that point, they both seemed to realize that Erwin’s teasing comments about ‘saving him’ might not end up being too far from the truth, for Levi had all but leapt into his arms all of a sudden for safety after being startled by a plant. It was funny, he had to admit, and he couldn’t help but smile knowingly while Levi stared at him, the expression causing him to frown in turn and step away because he was obviously thinking the same thing too. 

Because of that, Erwin chuckled, his veritable smirk only growing when Levi failed not to grab his hand again so that they could continue. At that point, Levi was only knee deep while Erwin was obviously less than that, but soon they made it farther, their progress even slower than it had been before, though, because Levi was now staring down into the water and looking all around him to make sure that nothing weird brushed against his skin. Thankfully, it was clear enough for him to do so, but eventually he had to pay attention to the waves, too, because they’d waded in quite deep and if he didn’t he’d probably get splashed in the face. 

The water was up to his chest now, Erwin saw, and at that point they stopped, because this was deeper than Levi had ever been with him although technically it wasn’t that far out. His height made this more difficult, Erwin knew, and he seemed to think the same thing then too, as after a few moments he turned, noticed where it came up to on Erwin, and scowled, glancing away a second to jump a bit so that a particularly large wave wouldn’t overtake him and possibly knock him down. 

“Are you alright?” Erwin asked him then, feeling confident that Levi was at least not seconds away from losing it and demanding they go back, as although he was still holding Erwin’s hand pretty tightly and wasn’t necessarily relaxed, he didn’t appear bewildered or anything worse than that. 

Despite that, however, he didn’t answer right away and seemed to pause to think about Erwin’s question, only responding a second later after he’d looked around and into the water and stood onto his tiptoes to avoid the top of another wave. 

“I guess.” He muttered then, right before he glanced back at Erwin and gestured towards the water line on both their bodies. “This, though? This is bullshit.”

“I know.” Erwin replied, remaining still while Levi again jumped out of harm’s way. 

Fighting back a smile at the sight, he wondered how much it was actually frustrating Levi. If they went out any farther, Erwin knew, he would have to literally swim, and although that was what they’d planned on, he wasn’t entirely sure now if Levi was ready for that. He didn’t seem to be in any hurry to continue, but fortunately, Erwin had already anticipated this and had thought of an idea for a potential solution. 

“Do you want to ride on my back?” He asked, watching as Levi looked him over at the question and appeared to consider the idea. “You can hold onto me, and I can go out a bit deeper. I’ll stop before it gets over my shoulders, and then you can see about swimming. How does that sound?”

“Uh...alright, I guess.” Levi replied after a moment, after he’d bitten his lip and glanced out at the ocean and back again. 

Smiling at his response, though, Erwin turned as best he could without letting go of Levi’s hand, crouching down in the water while Levi grabbed onto his shoulders and climbed onto his back. Like that, Erwin slipped his arms under Levi’s knees and stood up again once he’d secured a hold around his neck, thankfully managing to not squeeze him as tightly there as he had been Erwin’s hand. He’d probably choke if Levi did, he thought, feeling amused at the image of it and warm from having Levi’s body now pressed against his own. He liked it, obviously, and essentially gave him a piggyback ride farther out into the ocean — something that was really no sweat, as Levi was easy to carry like this and he became even lighter once they stepped deeper into the water. 

Because of that, it wasn’t long before Erwin was submerged up to his shoulders while Levi, of course, was higher than that, still holding onto him with his arms and his legs as he stared out over Erwin’s head to watch the waves. By then, they were no longer breaking and were just swells, but one came every now and then that was big enough for Erwin to have to jump up off the sandy bottom to avoid too. Honestly, though, he was more concerned about Levi getting splashed than he was himself, which was good, because it didn’t take long before he failed to hop in time and he ended up smacked right in the face by the front of a veritable wall of water.  

It splashed into his eyes and went over his head to wet his hair, and naturally, he’d been in the middle of saying something, so he found himself coughing for a second before he spit out a mouthful of saltwater while he heard Levi snort in amusement above him — a sound that let him know he had probably made it out unscathed before Erwin even had a chance to ask. Shaking his head a bit, he felt Levi use his hand to swipe strands of damp hair out of his eyes, reaching up to clear his vision himself, too, before he let out a chuckle and risked glancing back at Levi over his shoulder.

“How are you doing?” He asked then, obviously inquiring about Levi’s state in general, because they’d been standing at this depth for a few minutes and he hadn’t really said much yet. 

Was he still holding up relatively well, or did he want to go back? Considering that Erwin couldn’t see his face it was hard for him to tell, but he at least knew that Levi wasn’t clinging to him any tighter than he had been before — or at least, he wasn’t in general, because Erwin could feel Levi squeezing him a bit to hold on every time he buoyed them both up to dodge a wave. 

“Okay.” Levi murmured in response while Erwin did just that again, speaking in a quiet voice right near Erwin’s ear before he sighed. “It’s not that fucking bad, I guess, as long as I don’t think about what kind of shit might be under the water.”

Chuckling a bit at that — partly because he was relieved to hear Levi’s words, and partly because he still found them kind of amusing — Erwin shifted his hold on Levi’s legs and tried his best to give him a smile, barely missing another splash to the face because of how long he ended up looking away. “There’s nothing down there, not here. There’s only sand and shells and baby fish.”

“And seaweed?” Levi ground out, immediately making Erwin laugh out loud as he remembered the incident from earlier. 

“Yes, and seaweed.”

“It just felt fucking weird on my leg, okay?”

“I understand.”

“I mean, I didn’t see it, so for all I knew that shit was an eel.”

“Well, both of those things  _ are  _ pretty slimy.”

At that, Levi made a sound of amusement again, and they fell into another minute or two of comfortable silence while Erwin bobbed them up and down in the water and waded around. Nearby on each side of them, groups of people were swimming, laughing, and playing too, and there were others now frockling in the path they had taken to get out there. All in all, the beach was pretty crowded, but that was because it was popular, which was one of the reasons that he’d picked this one for Levi’s first swimming ‘lesson.’ He’d thought that perhaps the amount of people would make him more comfortable, that perhaps seeing large groups of them relaxing in the ocean unscathed would make him feel less like it was a big deal. 

Whether that worked or not, he wasn’t sure, but either way, he found himself pleasantly surprised when Levi suddenly shifted on his back, loosening his arms for a moment before he spoke and finally took some initiative on his own.

“Uh...I’m gonna try to swim.” He pronounced, honestly not sounding entirely sure as he did so, Erwin thought, even as he moved again and prepared to actually let go.

“Alright.” He murmured though, making sure that he sounded as encouraging as he could even though he was not really worried, especially since the problem was not that Levi didn’t know how to swim. No, he was, in fact, actually a rather strong swimmer — something that Erwin had seen in the many times that they’d swam in Uri’s pool. Obviously, this was a bit different because it was the ocean, but the tide was calm that day as he’d said and Erwin did not think he’d have a problem. “I’ll be right beside you.”

True to his word, Erwin followed Levi on foot after he’d let go and drifted back a bit behind him, waving his arms in the water and kicking his legs out in front of him to stay afloat. Because of the salt content in the sea it wasn’t really hard for him to do so, and he stayed like that for a while, bobbing up and down with the waves and watching Erwin wade around beside him. Eventually, he, too, lifted his feet though so that he could float for a while, as he found the experience relaxing and the water calming, but not so much that he ever let his eyes drift away from Levi just in case something happened. 

Predictably, though, nothing did, and before it was over with Levi felt brave enough to turn around and really start to swim, kicking behind him and doing a lazy breaststroke in the direction of the open sea. Obviously, Erwin followed him as closely as he could, smiling to himself because of how well this was actually going — right before he suddenly saw the largest wave he had seen all day approaching them seemingly at 100 miles per hour. It was going so fast, in fact, that he barely had time to warn Levi, who had seen it as well, at least, and stopped swimming in an attempt to right himself in the water so that his head wouldn’t get completely overtaken by the wave. 

Somehow, he managed to keep himself afloat enough to do so, but the actual force of the wave was enough to push him back a few feet — something that caused his body to nearly smack right against Erwin’s front, for he had practically dove toward Levi in his own attempt to keep him from going under. Seeing Levi rushing towards him, glimpsing his  _ open hand  _ heading right towards his face, he managed to dodge but couldn’t keep his balance with how hard he threw himself to the side, and ended up splashing nearly face down into the ocean to take an unplanned dive a foot or two towards the bottom. 

A few seconds later, though, and he had righted himself and resurfaced, wiping the water from his eyes and immediately realizing that he was facing the wrong way. Twisting around, he then caught sight of Levi floating just a bit behind him, staring at him with wide eyes and parted lips that only spoke of surprise. For a moment, they just looked at each other like that — Erwin mostly just trying to make sure that Levi was okay — before Erwin started laughing, before the concern passed that Levi had gotten roughed up by the wave and he instead just felt...well, like he was having  _ fun.  _

Smiling, he found himself diving towards Levi again on a whim, swimming towards him and reaching out to playfully grab his foot. Gently, he stepped forward and jerked Levi closer at the same time, making sure to catch him, however, before he flailed and the momentum caused his head to be dunked under water. Even so, Levi made a surprised sound and then cursed, opening his eyes wide and continuing to swear at Erwin dramatically — at least until he was kissed, anyway, and cut off mid-sentence by the firm press of Erwin’s lips against his own. 

For a moment, Erwin thought, he was still, but then the initial surprise seemed to fade and he melted into it, tightening his arms and legs around him from where he’d grabbed onto his body on instinct. Obviously, Erwin held Levi around the middle too, and although it had not been his intention to start making out with him, that was essentially what happened, as apparently, the giddy, excitable mood he was in was contagious, and Levi was now comfortable or certain he was safe enough to let go and allow himself to feel it all and be distracted. Because of that, because of the fact that he seemed to have actually liked the way Erwin had grabbed him for an embrace — he hadn’t been able to help it, as he’d just been so overwhelmed with fondness for Levi and what they were doing — Levi threw a lot into the kiss, moving his lips over Erwin’s eagerly and licking into his mouth as if he’d been dying to taste him. 

Needless to say, for that reason Erwin lost himself for a moment, but only for a moment, because it wasn’t much longer before another large wave suddenly struck him hard enough to almost cause him to stumble. Water splashed over his shoulders too and he pulled away with another laugh, honestly feeling breathless from the intensity of their kissing even though it had only been about two minutes. Smiling happily, he gave Levi a fond squeeze and took in the redness of his cheeks — that wasn’t from the sun, he knew — as well as the slightly dazed expression that he fixed Erwin with before, right as the corners of his lips twitched up and he smiled back.

“Shit.” He said too, pushing Erwin’s wet hair back so that he could better look into his eyes. As he did so, his own widened a bit, unfocusing for a single second as he apparently remembered how Erwin had fallen underwater earlier. “I thought that wave knocked you out.”

“No, it probably wouldn’t do that, but your hand would.” Erwin replied, chuckling again while Levi raised an eyebrow.

“My hand?”

“Yes. It was coming straight for my face. I was trying to catch you, but I had to get out of the way.”

“Oh.”

“I still caught you afterward, though.” Erwin said slyly, referring to the way that he had grabbed Levi a few minutes ago and pulled him into his arms. “And now, you’re not going anywhere.”

“Oh, yeah? Why the fuck not?”

“Because.”

“Because why?”

“Because then I can’t kiss you anymore.”

Scoffing, Levi stared into Erwin’s face at that and then bit his lip, eyeing him for another moment before he closed the distance between them again for another kiss himself. This was one much sweeter and gentler than their embrace had been earlier, but still, they stayed like that for another few minutes, just kissing and watching each other and talking in low voices, all while Levi held onto Erwin’s front as he stood there in the ocean. It was nice, and he was glad that Levi seemed to be enjoying it too — or at least, he thought, not hating it, as he had remained calm and appeared not to be in a rush to go back. 

Still, they eventually did make their way back to shore after about 30 more minutes or so, because the water really was becoming almost too crowded, and they were both starting to get hungry as it was probably nearing lunch time. Hand in hand again, they waded back up onto the beach together to go find where they’d laid their towels, drying off and eventually ending up standing there quietly for a minute while Levi looked out at sea.

“You did it, Levi.” Erwin found himself saying then, reaching out to wrap an arm around his waist so that he could tug him closer. “You swam in the ocean.”

“Yeah.” Levi replied, biting his lip while he continued to stare at the water.

Pausing for a moment, he appeared to think, and because of the frown on his face Erwin almost began to wonder if — even though he’d done well — he was having second thoughts about his decision to try all this out in the first place. If so, Erwin thought, that was fine, but before he could say anything else Levi turned back towards him, fixing him with a renewed determined look as he spoke.

“Next time,” He said, proving to Erwin how amazing and incredible he was all over again. “Let’s bring the goggles.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you all for reading <3


End file.
